Release of the Caged Soul
by Umiki
Summary: SMxNaruto Her death gave her a new journey, one that the Fates would not control at every turn. But not without paying a price first. Revised
1. Chapter 1

Umiki: Hi, this is my officially first SM/Naruto crossover so please don't be too harsh. For all the lawyers out there ready to sink their fangs into any good suing job, I completely do **not** own either Sailor Moon or Naruto. They both belong to their respective creators.

Warning/ Character death and future OOC. I'll explain at the bottom of the chapter.

Release of the Caged Soul

(Chapter 1)

The Domino Park was one of the few places in Juuban that you could find naturally growing trees in abundance. It had a lake, beautiful flowers, and more than the occasional birds. Lastly, it was the only place that the nineteen year-old Tsukino Usagi could ever feel at peace.

The said girl was sitting on her favorite swing, watching as the sun began to set. She felt a sigh coming on as she began to feel a sense of melancholy come over her. This was the last time she would probably ever see her favorite park during a sunset. Why?

Because she was dying.

Over a year ago Usagi had been diagnosed with a disease with symptoms of heart failure and coughing up blood. Setsuna had secretly informed her that it was a disease that only infected those with Lunarian blood, and was considered fatal and incurable. In the past Lunarians had developed immunity to the disease, but the genes for the disease never left their blood streams. Because Usagi was originally human before her Lunarian blood awoke, she had no natural immunity to it. The only bright side of this was that she was more human than Lunarian, so it would take twice even three times as longer for the disease to take its toll on her.

Her family had tried to help her in every way they could, but she knew that they were becoming more prone to depression as the date of her predetermined death approached. She would try to comfort them as much as possible, but it was becoming harder to do as she grew weaker with each passing day. This was actually the last day she was allowed to leave the house by herself due to her weakening condition.

'Its ironic really, my enemies would spend so much of their time and energy trying to find a way to get rid of me, even using kamikaze attacks. Yet the source of my demise is the blood that gave me the power to defeat those same enemies.' she thought.

Watching the last of the sunset, she suddenly hunched over as she fell into a coughing fit. After a minute of coughing, she removed her hand to find it covered in blood. 'It won't be long now.' she predicted as she fisted her bloody hand.

(Five months later)

Tsukino Shingo glanced at his left as the familiar yet still foreign sound of the heart monitor continued to beep. He almost flinched when he saw his sister lying on the hospital bed. His sister was now in the final stage of her disease, and everyone who was close to her was now awaiting for the end to come.

Looking over to where his parents were sitting, he saw his mother clasping her hands together in prayer while his father was holding his head in his hands. Looking back at his sister, he remembered when she was diagnosed the first thing she did was comfort them. She told them she would be fine and that it would be okay. She had accepted her condition with her stupid smile on her face and told them that she would not accept any medical help, if she was going to die she would just have to live what little of her life was left to the fullest.

He had been surprised at first when he saw so many people come when word got out that she was on her death bed. Her normal group of friends had come, but later complete strangers had come to visit her. Some were familiar due to their popularity, like the Three Lights and the Ayakashi Quartet who were famous for their solon products. Others he had never seen before, like the man with platinum-blonde hair and red eyes; for some reason the others had treated him with some surprise and a little respect. Strangely another visitor, a woman with blonde-red root hair and red eyes wearing a simple gold long-sleeved dress, had made his sister's friends tense for a few minutes but they ended up ignoring her.

Hearing the door click open, he saw the doctor who had taken care of his sister throughout her ordeal. Approaching his family, he spoke in a low voice to his parents. He was probably giving them some final comforts. After finishing with his parents he turned to the rest of the group and spoke.

"Its been determined that her heart will start failing within the next ten minutes at least, a half-hour at most. Whatever last words you may have for her, it would be best if you take turns now and leave before it happens. I will return after ten minutes to check on her." He told them before leaving the room.

His parents went first, telling her how proud they were that she continued to walk through life even against great odds. They left the room soon afterward when his mother started crying. Next were the two strangers, they said some things that he had no idea meant. They bowed low to the still form of his sister before they left, leaving only him and the others to say their goodbyes. He watched as they spoke in low tones to his sister and after five minutes they left to give him some privacy.

Stepping up to the bed, he felt his mouth go dry as the full weight of everything slammed into him. This was the moment that he knew would come ever since a year and a half ago. Steeling himself, he spoke up.

"Oi Ondango, I can't believe your leaving us. You're supposed to live at least till you married and had a few kids. You were supposed to grow old and still be the same stupid meatball-head." He took a deep breath, "You made me promise that no matter what, I would move on and fulfill my dreams. To never let this hold me back, even if it felt impossible. Well I'll keep that promise but you better watch over us till we meet again. Stupid Ondango-neesan." He choked out as tears began to fall down his face.

As if the end of his speech was a signal, her heart monitor went flat and the deafening scream of the machinery could be heard everywhere. Shingo could feel his body go cold and the room become a blur as the scream continued. He heard a bang as the doctors came into the room and he could feel himself being escorted from the room by a faceless staff member. Once outside the room he didn't know how long he had stood there before his mother wrapped her arms around him.

After what seemed like hours, the sounds of the machinery stopped all together as he heard the muffled voice of the doctor announce,

"TOD 10:43 pm.

(End)

Now to you Usagi-fans out there, know that I am a die-heart Usagi fan as well. But for my story to work Usagi needed to die. No one's angry at me I hope……..(duck behind a wall as multiple knives and other pointy things head straight for me)

Okay, okay. Yesh, my reasons for doing this will be explained in the next chapter.

But there is something I need help with. I've always been a fan of Usagi/Naruto pairings, but I'm not sure if I should have that as my main pairing. So I'm asking you to tell me which of these pairings you want as the main pairing, and if there is a different pairing you want then tell me.

Pairings:

Usagi/Naruto

Usagi/Sasuke

Usagi/Gaara

Thanks for reading my fic and double thanks for any input you guys give me!


	2. Chapter 2

Umiki: This is chapter number two! As promised this chapter will explain why Usa-chan had to die. And as stated earlier I own nothing.

Release of the Caged Soul

(Chapter 2)

Within the mist filled realm of the Time Gate, eight figures could be seen standing in front of the said gate while one figure was sleeping comfortably on the ground. One of the figures bent their knees and started to shake the lying figure.

"Serenity-hime, you need to wake up." the voice of a female spoke. 'Serenity-hime' groaned and mumbled, "Five more minutes' haha." before rolling over for a more comfortable position. Another one of the figures growled before stomping over to the now identified Usagi and bellowing, "WAKE UP YOU ONDANGO-BAKA!!!!!"

Usagi sprung into the air with a shriek and landed on her rump. She hissed as the landing sent her pain sensors into overdrive. "Ite, ite. Okay, whoever woke me up better have a GOOD explanation or there will be bloodshed." There was Hell-fire in the background as her anger became apparent.

The other figures sweat-dropped as she said this, 'She never changes.' they thought.

Blinking, Usagi turned to look behind her and smiled with joy. "Minna-chan?!! How is this possible? Wait a minute YOU DIDN'T DIE TOO DID YOU?!?!" she screamed in panic. The sweat-drops increased as she continued to ramble off in a panic.

'This was supposed to be the future queen of Earth?'

The figure that woke Usagi up felt tick marks pop up as her temper got the better of her. "ONDANGO-AMTAMA URUSEI ALREADY!!!"

'Oh great.' The others thought.

"NANI?!?! What was that PYRO?!"

"You heard me Ondango!!"

"NNYYAAAAAA."

"NNNYYYAAAA."

"_And so the __tongue__ wars begin anew. When will those two grow up?"_ Makoto grumbled. "_Not in our lifetime Makoto."_ Ami whispered back.

Setsuna sighed, this was wasting time. "Now both of you cease this and let us continue with what we planned." she scolded.

Both Rei and Usagi stopped their war and had the decency to look embarrassed. Usagi than gained a confused look as she asked, "What plan?"

Ami sighed and recited, "The plan was that after you died we would bring your soul to the Time Gates to be reborn."

Usagi felt a pang as the memories of what she had to live through before she died came back to her, "Ano, minna-chan….I don't think I want to go back." she told them, sadness clearly heard in her voice.

The others looked at her as if she had grown an extra head. Usagi sighed.

"There is no real reason for me to go back except to become the Queen. All of our enemies have been defeated, and if I do not create Crystal Tokyo then the Dark Moon Family will never come to exist. Mamoru and I broke up for good long before I was even diagnosed and I stayed away from romantic relationships afterwards for the specific reason that I would die before I would ever reach twenty. Also….after my family suffered so much for my sake, if I were to suddenly appear they would not only think they had gone mad but they would also feel all of their suffering come back to them in full force. I refuse to do that to them after all they did for me."

The entire realm was silent as her words settled into their hearts. In truth, they were the only ones who had not been ready to let go of their princess so soon. They were not prepared to lose the light she gave them and had been willing to incur the wrath of the Fates to bring her back. But when she told them with all of her heart put into the words, they knew they couldn't go through with it if that was her wish.

"_There is still a chance for you to live a life o__f your own choosing my daughter"_ a soft voice floated from the mist. All of them turned to see a figure of a woman approach, and as she drew closer they soon saw just who she was. All but Usagi kneeled and bowed their heads in respect for the last monarch of the Silver Millennium. Usagi walked up to her and embraced her.

"Selenity- mama, why have you left your spiritual resting place? Has something happened to the Earth or the Moon?" Usagi asked with worry. Selenity smiled softly, trust her daughter to worry about those she protects over her own problems.

"_No child, nothing is wrong. Demo I know that you do not wish to cause pain to your human family yet a part of you still wishes to live a life of your choosing._" She told her reincarnated daughter.

Usagi nodded sadly while the others watched from the side. Selenity smiled, "_As such __I have called on the Fates to repay the debt they still owed me._" Usagi looked at her past mother inquisitively. "_You will be given a life in a different__ world__ but__ there will be a price to pay, for even the Fates cannot let someone go to another world without compensation._

_The first price obviously would be that your __physical __ties to your former world __be cut, or to be more precise you have to die. The reason__s__ for this price is simple, it gives those you leave behind some closer and because if you go to another world than your __body could col__lapse from the strain of the gravity, or you would have to learn an entire language from scratch, and many other complications from entering a new world with your original body.__"_

Usagi nodded in understanding to the logic, going to a new world sounded more similar to going to a different planet than anything else. Selenity continued, "_The second price will be for the new body itself. Something of __great powe__r__ must be given in order to receive a body that will b__e able to __accommodate__ your soul."_ Usagi had a good idea as to what the compensation for this one would be. "_And lastly, the third price will be the greatest of them all. For the price of even __**going**__ to another world must be something the traveler treasures most."_

As the words sunk in, Usagi felt her body shiver. The price for the second one was more than easy to find, but the third price……..

Selenity sighed as her daughter realized just what was being asked of her. In a forbidding voice she said, "_The price for you to go to another world, the thing you treasure the most, __are the bonds that connect you and those you love together.__" _At those words Minako paled. Minako, being the next in line to become the Love Goddess, knew the full meaning of the price and felt despair. The others were confused.

"Ano Selenity-sama, what do you mean by 'bonds'?" Hotaru timidly asked.

_"What I mean young Hotaru, is that to accept my offer of a new life, my daughter must give up her most precious memories.Any memory of her life involving the senshi and her family will not exist, leaving only specters and fog where you once existed. **She won't remember you.**" she told them. _

Every one of them were silent as the dead queen stood before them with patience, she had literally all the time in the world to wait for an answer.

Usagi felt like she was at a crossroad, on one hand she could remain here in her original world with all of her memories and continue her journey to the Underworld. On the other, in return for her memories and the Ginzuishou, she would be given a new life. A life where her decisions would not be dictated by the whim of the Fates. But that would bring suffering to the friends she left behind. Truthfully, she did not know if she could choose.

Hino Rei watched as the woman, whom she had fought, laughed, and cried with since they were fourteen, emotionally tear herself in two. She knew Usagi better than she herself did at times and Rei knew that unless Usagi was encouraged, than she would not willingly do something for her own sake. Memories of when they first met, of when Usagi slapped her back to get her to stop Yuuichiru from leaving, the tongue wars they did almost every day, Usagi holding her gently as Rei cried over her earlier encounter with her father, and the dying figure lying on the hospital bed flew through her mind. Mentally sighing with resignation and annoyance, she spoke harshly, "Just accept her offer Ondango-baka!"

Usagi spun around and stared at the fire senshi with shock. Rei twitched, "I'm not trying to send you away baka, demo we've had you to ourselves long enough. It's about time we let you go already. I mean come on, there's probably someone else who needs you more than we do anyway!" She was breathing heavily when she finished her rant. The silence that followed was deafening.

After what seemed like hours, all of them were surprised with who spoke next, "She's right Koneko. We had you help us heal and grow for five years and even as you 'died' you were still there for us………it-it's time for you to live for 'you' and not us." Haruka stuttered, while Michiru put her arm around her lover in comfort. Slowly, one-by-one, the rest of the senshi gave her the go-ahead.

Usagi felt a tear trail down her face, and with a shaky smile she turned to the ever-patient queen. With a deep breath, she told the queen without falter, "Queen Selenity-sama, I accept your offer."

(End)

#2 complete. Thank you to all who are still with me. Remember to send what pairing you want!


	3. Chapter 3

Umiki: Chapter three is here! I know that I'm taking my sweet time with this fic but bare with me on this. The good stuff is coming in this chapter! And I own nothing!

1/16/09

Revised. revised, revised! ^_^

Release of the Caged Soul

Usagi stood before the queen with no fear or hesitation to the decision she had just made. The senshi were watching from the side as the two royals' stared at each other.

Suddenly, the queen smiled with both sadness and approval.

"_You will most likely never change my curious kitten, and I am happy that you have chosen to take this opportunity. Shikashi, before I make the trade there are two things we must do." _Selenity told Usagi. Usagi raised an eyebrow in question. Selenity smiled, "_Your senshi must give you gifts because you have 'retired' from the duty of being the Moon Hime, as per tradition."_

For a moment Usagi was confused about the 'tradition' part, but then she remembered the first, and most bleak, lesson Luna told her on senshi etiquette.

(Flashback)

"The tradition of the senshi is to give gifts to the royal they serve upon the royals retirement. It was meant to be a sign of good will to the royal to show that they would answer their calling again if the said royal summoned them for aid, because the senshi themselves would retire in turn to go about their own lives. However, this was not always so. Once the exchanging of gifts was to insure that the one who protected the royal would not betray them. The senshi would fuse a portion of their souls into the gifts in front of the court before handing the gift to the royal as their oath of loyalty. The practice itself became what it is today upon the beginning of the Silver Alliance, because by then the Moon Royal family no longer needed to fear that their own soldiers would assassinate them."

(End flashback)

'That was considered the creepiest lesson Luna ever told me, and that was saying a lot.' Usagi thought dryly. Usagi was brought out of her thoughts when Selenity continued speaking.

"_And the last thing we need to do is decide which world you will go to. I believe that Setsuna can help us with that."_

Setsuna winced with nervousness as she felt Selenity's gaze land on her. 'Oh Lord Chronos, please tell me that she doesn't plan to use **it**.'

'She wants to use **it**, of all things why it?! The one thing I never wanted to have to open again, the Sakura Road!' Setsuna ranted as she stood before the said 'Road'. The 'Road' was actually an arch standing ten feet tall and was made of wood. It had branches growing out of it and had Sakura blossoms in abundance, but what made it unnatural was the fact that the blossoms were made of crystals in blue, green, and purple shades.

To Setsuna, the Sakura Road was an experience she **never **wanted to go through again. But Selenity had other plans. 'No doubt this is my punishment for almost committing a taboo laid down by the Fates.' she grumbled. Sighing heavily, Setsuna prepared to open the road.

Selenity, noticing the confused expressions, decided to explain to the curious senshi, "_The Sakura Road is the realm the Fates created eons ago. Its purpose was to give them an easier access to the events of multiple worlds at the same time, allowing them to do their duties more fluidly. Over time it expanded till almost all of the worlds resided within it. However, if someone were to enter this realm without the permission of the Fates, they were punished severely. And even with their permission, if one was not careful or they lost their way, then the possibility of that person wandering the Road till the end of existence itself ended was a high possibility._" Selenity told them, with a voice elders used to tell ancient folk tales to young children. The senshi shivered at the possible fate of some poor soul, a fate that may have already befallen someone.

(Somewhere in the Sakura Road)

"You know, I am very glad that I don't exist in that world."

"**Why is that you stupid-girl?"**

"'Cause no way would I be able to survive the craziness and insanity that poor kid goes through. I mean come on; he turns into a girl whenever he's splashed with cold water for Christ sake!!"

"…………**..You are just as crazy ya know."**

"How so?"

"**You talking to a person that only exists in your head is considered a clear sign of being a crazy."**

"………..Shut up."

"**Whatever. By the way, the pig with the bandana just transformed."**

"CUTE LITTLE P-CHAN IS A PERVERTED CURSED BOY TOO?!?!?! NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!"

"…………**..I rest my case."**

(Back at the Arch)

Selenity than spoke to the senshi in the most regal voice they had ever heard from the deceased queen, "_This is as far as you can go. The Fates gave entry to Usagi, Setsuna, and me; the less people in the Road the better are their philosophy. This is the time to give my daughter your gifts before she leaves this world forever."_

The women nodded their heads and steeled their resolve. They all knew one day this 'ceremony' would come because they too had been given the lesson on the tradition of the 'Passing Royal'. They understood that with this 'ceremony', they would truly be free from the senshi duty. This had both frightened and relieved them, because it meant that they could live their lives without having to be ready to enter to a new war at every given moment; but it also meant that the bond between them all would be completely severed. The only comfort they would have were the memories they made during those precious years together.

To the senshi, it was an eternity before they began the ceremony, with a crying Ami in the lead, "The gift I give onto thee is the gift of a sounder mind. Knowledge shall process twice as quick and thy shall become more cleaver. This I give to thee in good blessings." She placed the tips of her trembling fingers to Usagi's temples and they both glowed blue, before Ami stepped back.

Rei was next, "The gift I give to you, my leader, is the release of your spirit. You shall be able to use your spiritual power with greater ease than before this day. This I give in good blessings." Than like before, she placed her fingertips to the temples and they both glowed red. Rei was visibly restraining herself from grabbing Usagi and locking her in her grandfather's shrine as she returned to the rest of the senshi.

Makoto went next, "To you my dear friend, I give you the voice of the Forest. To you plants and trees will speak to you as if they were human. This I give in good blessings." They both glowed green, than Makoto stepped back.

Minako was teary-eyed as she spoke, "To you (sniff) sister of my soul, I give the eyes of a child of Venus. (sob) The emotions (sniff) of all you meet will be laid bare before you and (choke) no lie will be unseen by your eyes. This I give in good blessings." Tears flowed down her face as they glowed gold for a few seconds. Minako then slowly backed away from her, to keep herself from losing control over her emotions.

Haruka stood before Usagi with sadness and pride, "The gift I give to you Koneko, is the gift of the steel. Any weapon you wish to master as your own will fused with your soul, and you shall become the weapon and it you during the heat of battle. This I give in good blessings." They glowed an orangish-yellow before Haruka saluted her former-hime and stepped back.

Michiru stepped up with the grace only the ancient people of Neptune could ever produce, "To my princess and leader, I give you the gift of the guide. With the contract of blood, you shall have spiritual partners that shall remain at your side till you die. How many you receive will be determined by the strength of your soul. This I give in good blessings." As they glowed a teal color, a tattoo of the contract of blood appeared on the back of her left wrist. It stun as it began the process of calling her future guides. Michiru stepped aside for the youngest of the senshi and went to her lover's side.

Hotaru placed her right hand over the left and chanted in the ancient language of Saturn. After three minutes a circular mirror, about the size of Usagi's hand, appeared. It had a frame covered by blood-red, silent-screaming faces and a demonic eye fused at the top of the mirror, one that stared directly at Usagi. Its glass was pitch black and it would not reflect any light. Selenity and Setsuna visibly stiffened and watched in frozen shock.

"To you, she who has become the mother of my heart, the opposite of my power, and the savior of my soul, I give you this. The power of the realm of the Hell Mirror; a realm used by Death when he comes to retrieve a soul. With this gift, you shall receive the permission to enter the realm and used it for your purposes. Be warned, this realm was also created so that the souls sins would be visible to any who looked closely enough. You will see the horrors committed by any you lay eyes on, and if you allow it, your mind will be swallowed up by the realm. Demo, there is only one thing you must always remember, if you encounter Death then merely bow your head and ignore him. He often uses that world as a place of judgement. Just go about your business and they, Death and the the denizens, will leave you alone." Hotaru set the mirror in front of Usagi so she could she her reflection in its black glass. She gasped as the eye's iris burned with fire and tears began to slide down her face, till they ceased to be tears of water but tears of blood. She glowed violet and for a moment she felt like she had been burned on every inch of her skin. In her reflection, a bleeding brand was now on her forehead. It was the kanji for 'privileged one', to tell any creature of the realm she had earned the right to use the realm. The mirror entered Usagi's body and Hotaru went to her adopted parents' side.

Setsuna approached her princess and once future monarch, "To you, she who willingly casts herself aside for others, and she who I will always serve, I give you an item to help in your travels. It is a compass crafted with powers from the Goddess Calypso. It will never point north, but it will always lead to where you need to be. And when the time comes, it will point you to what you want the most." With that, Setsuna's hand glowed maroon before she opened it to revel an eighteenth century compass. Placing it in Usagi's hand, she curled the hand into a fist and let a tear fall down her face. Smiling sadly, she approached the Arch and began to glow a with a maroon-colored energy as she held the Key Staff up to the Arch, and began to chant in a language not heard by human ears in over a thousand years. After five minutes, the space within the Arch glowed with a pinkish haze. Ceasing her chanting, Setsuna turned to the queen.

"We need to enter the Road now your Highness." Setsuna said. Selenity nodded and approached the Arch without falter than entered it, making a ripple effect on the haze. Usagi then approached the Arch and entered it. Once both monarchs entered, Setsuna stepped into the haze and with her leave the haze disappeared also.

The senshi could feel themselves begin to fade back to Juuban, their purpose in the Time Gates now finished. Before they were completely gone, Hotaru whispered, "Take care of yourself Moon-mama." and then they were gone.

Leaving only an Arch in the middle of the gloomy, mist covered realm of the Time Guardian.

(Within the Sakura Road)

'For some reason, I almost expected something grander.'

The Sakura Road had a white glowing path leading straight ahead for twenty feet before splitting into two paths. The path was lined with arches similar to the entrance to the Road however, there were subtle differences in the design of the arch.

Selenity turned to the woman behind her and told her, _"Every door here leads to another world, and you can get a glimpse of what they contain from the designs on the arches. You must keep at least three steps away from the doors, unless of course you want to end up being dropped into the world."_

Usagi walked past a few arches before stopping in front of an arch made of a strange white material. On the top was a nineteenth century pocket watch, with an angel wing on one side and a leather bat wing on the other. There were also two cream colored objects on either side of the Arch, they kind of reminded her of horns. One of the last things noted on the Arch was the there was a cross on the base of the arch.

"_The cross means that there is a high level of spiritual or mystical movement going on, and by the looks of things it involves the Church during the early twentieth or late nineteenth century. And if I remember correctly, the only thing the Church considers a mystical threat are devils." _Selenity spoke behind her daughter. Usagi nodded, so the designs on the arches held symbolical value than.

Skipping the next few arches on both sides, she stood before an arch made of a crystal consisting of neon maroon and neon blue on a black body. There were two feathers crossing each other, one white the other black. There were what looked like painting materials attached to both sides of the arch, and strangely enough there were what looked like carvings of two girls with the same face. 'Artistic environment or being artistically inclined. Some form of magic is involved, and one or more girls play a part in the equation.' she deduced.

Continuing on, she skipped many more arches till she reached the crossroad. Moving to the right road, she walked past even more when she jolted to a stop. Turning to the left, she was greeted with the sight of an arch made of wood. It had a nine-tailed fox on the top, with weapons straight out of a Japanese history text attached to the sides. There were three symbols carved into the arch, the first was a swirl directly underneath the fox, the second was a fan on the left side, and a circle on the right side. But what caught her attention the most was a pair of eyes filled with nothing but sadness, despair, and loneliness.

"_This is a world of death and sadness my daughter. The weapons tell that bloodshed is the calling-card of many in that world and the fox symbolizes either a servant of Inari or a demonic lord. The symbols signify that three specific people or families are greatly involved in this world's future."_ Selenity told Usagi gravely.

"What do the eyes mean?" Usagi asked the queen. Selenity sighed.

"_They mean that suffering is in abundance in that world. It is through suffering that major players grow and will shape the world."_ Selenity replied.

Usagi stared at the arch with determination and though she could feel the uneasiness her mother was emitting, she knew Selenity would not try to deter her. She closed her eyes and used a little of her power to try and see the souls of the world. And in an instant, she felt the souls of a pure beings surrounded by hatred and fear, before her power was push out. Snapping her eyes open she turned around to face her previous mother.

"This is the world I shall have become my own, O Queen of the Moon. No other shall I live within nor die within. Take thy compensation for my decision and let me enter this world of darkness and blood." Usagi spoke regally.

Selenity stepped forward and held her arms out, palm up, and glowed silver as she spoke with utmost authority, _"The gifts have been given, the choice has been made, and the first price has been exchanged. Now Daughter of the Moon and Stars, exchange the second price that must be paid." _Usagi held out her hands, cupping the space over her heart and summoned the Ginzinshiou. Whispering to it, she too glowed silver as the royal crescent moon mark appeared on her forehead before the crystal floated over to the queen. She ceased to glow silver and the mark audibly broke like glass and disappeared completely.

With this act, Tsukino Usagi could no longer be acknowledged as the Tsuki no Hime ever again.

Selenity continued, _"The second price has been paid, upon entering the world thou shall receive thy new body. Now thou must pay the final price to complete the deal."_

Usagi stiffened as she braced herself, her now bloody tears falling as she gave the queen the signal to continue.

There was a flash of light, the sensation of her soul being ripped apart, and before she was consumed in darkness she heard the queen say, _"I left you a gift of my own child, one that can be both to your benefit and your sorrow." _

(Within the Taki no Kuni)

'…….Cold………why is it cold…...'

Voices could be heard screaming, "Minna! There's a girl in the river! In the river!"

Splashes could be heard before the said girl knew nothing more.

(End)

Chapter three is out! Thanks to all those who have continued to read my works.

Anyway, here are the results thus far:

Usagi/Naruto: 4 (1/2) [I count second option for pairings as a ½ point, forgot to mention that earlier! (Blush)]

Usagi/Gaara: 5

Usagi/Sasuke: 3

Gaara is in the lead folks! I plan to choose the pairing by the fifth or sixth chapter at least so keep up the reviews! And remember, if you want Usagi with someone else than what I've presented than tell me!

1/16/09

I hope you liked the finishing touches to it!


	4. Chapter 4

Umiki: Chapter 4. To all of my loyal fans, thank you for staying with me so far! I have been working on some other projects and I have also been working on stuff for college. And I know some of you are probably annoyed that none of the other characters have popped up yet, but just wait a little longer.

"Speech" normal & guardian

"_Speech" _guardian

"Speech" guardian

1/16/09

Revised!!!!

Release of the Caged Soul

Chapter 4

(In the Meeting House of Fuka Gai)

All the adults of the village were sitting in two rows, one against each wall and facing the other row. At the end of the two rows was the seat of the village leader.

The room was a-buzz with whispers as many made theories about the village's 'guest'. Everyone was wondering who the girl was and what she was doing in the lake. Most of the elders were silent as they waited patiently for the news before making any conclusions, while the younger generation were demanding she be sent away from the village.

The village leader, commonly referred to as 'Danna', was sitting cross-legged and had his eyes closed. He was waiting on the village medic to arrive with her diagnostic. He didn't have to wait long.

Yuri-san, the village's only medic, entered the House and walked down the hall till she stood in front of him. Opening his eyes, the whispers died down as they all but leaned in to hear her report.

"How is she?" Danna asked her.

"….Physically? She is currently as healthy as any child should be, demo there are signs of her suffering from a disease I've never come across before. The disease has long since left her system, and the only other thing abnormal in her system were signs of some sort of jutsu erasing parts of her memory." the woman replied, she too in her middle-ages.

"Will she remember her past?" a man sitting farther down the left row asked.

"Much of her memory was erased, so I am not sure how much she will remember." She replied.

"……..So what do you think happened to her?" one of the elder woman breathed.

"The disease she suffered from is foregin, completely unknown to my knowledge and from the internal scars on her body she barely survived it. The scars also tell me that it was very recent, but considering it had already left her system I doubt it is contagious. The memory erase was done with purpose and I can tell that whatever she does remember will not be of much use."

"So it is doubtful we will ever know what happened to her." Danna summerized.

"Doubtful." Yuri-san repeated.

The room was silent before Yuri-san spoke up again, "I found three items on her that were emitting chakra, demo the chakra itself was….cold. That is the only word I can use to explain it…………I brought them with me, demo brace yourselves. The chakra can pack a punch when being felt for the first time." She took out a wrapped bundle from the bag at her side and placed them in front of Danna. Untying the cloth, she showed the items to everyone there.

A punch wasn't even close to what they felt as the wave of chakra shot out from the objects. But it wasn't the **amount** of chakra that made them shake with fear; it was the **emotions** that they emitted.

The first item was a small box that could fit perfectly in someone's' palm, it had a circular top and was connected to a thick string. The emotions most prominent were loneliness and sorrow. The second item was a grotesque, black glass mirror; the very aura around it made every war-veteran there tense. The aura reminded them of all the times they had been exposed to death and blood during the last war. The last item was a blank rectangular piece of wood, and the only emotion it emitted was empathy.

Every person who could sense chakra felt chills go down their spines as they thought, 'What on Earth would a six year old girl be doing with items that emit such emotion-ridden chakra.'

(With Usagi)

In one of the smaller houses, the girl in question was lying in a futon. She soon began to stir for a few minutes before groaning in pain as her head began to pound.

'Why do I feel like I was put through a shredder **and** that I tied one on?'(1) She thought. She was in agony as she felt like she was being stung by hundreds of needles with each breath she took.

"Oh my goodness, you've finally woken up!" a surprised voice exclaimed. She winced as the voice made her head feel even worse. She curled into a ball and groaned as she tried to block the pain. She barely registered that her back was being rubbed soothingly as the pain began to lessen.

After ten minutes, the pain had become small enough that she could move slowly without causing her head to pound. Glancing behind her, she saw the person who had tried to help her was a woman. She was nearly in her forties, with a salt-and-pepper effect in the roots of her hair. Her eyes were green and her skin was a healthy tan, most likely from long hours in the sun. The woman smiled at her.

"So chibi-chan, is there anything you need? Food, water, etc?" she asked.

"Water if you please ma'am." Usagi replied hoarsely. Instantly a cup of water was handed to her. 'How'd she do that?' Usagi wondered. Cups of water don't just appear out of nowhere like that.

Finishing the water, Usagi took in her surroundings. She was in a small, traditional room, about 8-by-9 feet, with a sliding door leading to another room. The room itself was plain, having only a standing tray with a pitcher of water on it and the futon she was lying in. Taking a deep breath, she noticed that the air was cleaner than usual.

The woman either didn't notice her scan of the room or simply ignored it as she spoke, "You were quite lucky chibi-chan, if the children had not found you when they did you may have ended up drowning." Usagi glanced back at her.

"Drown?" she inquired.

"Oh yes, Yuri-san mentioned that you would most likely have memory lose so it's understandable why you may not remember anything about how you ended up in the river. Demo I do need to know if you remember your name by any chance." The woman said.

"Watashi wa Usagi desu." Usagi replied without missing a beat. The woman raised an eyebrow at her introduction.

"Desu? I haven't heard anyone use that phrase since my grandmother's day, very interesting." She said curiously. Usagi blinked in confusion.

"Doushite?"

"Due to the village's isolated location, the villagers back then did not know that that phrase had not been used for over a hundred years. The phrase itself was no longer used by my mother's day." The woman replied. Suddenly she snorted and shook her head in disbelief.

"Where are my manners? I forgot to introduce myself, watashi wa Chinatsu. I am the owner of this house." Chinatsu bowed.

Usagi bowed her head in turn before speaking, "You mentioned someone named Yuri-san?"

Chinatsu nodded happily, "She is the village's medic, she is currently having a meeting with the rest of the village at the House. Doushite?" she asked.

Usagi looked straight into Chinatsu's eyes, "Chinatsu-san, for some reason I have a feeling that I need to find this Yuri-san; and **soon**."

(at the House)

"…………These items are somewhat disturbing Yuri-san. Were they like this even before you touched them?" Danna asked, a bead of sweat falling down the side of his face as he stared at the items. Yuri stiffened.

"Not exactly Danna-san…." She hesitated, almost uncertain about what to say next. Danna straightened his back, waiting for her continue.

With a deep breath she said, "…..when I was doing a chakra-physical exam of the child's body, the items did not appear at all during the scan. I was caught by surprise when I changed her cloths because I would never have known that they were there had I not actually changed them myself. I did a second scan, to see if I had somehow missed something, demo I received no signal; even though I could feel the chakra that had began to emit from them as I held them, it was if they did not exist.….. it frightened me Danna-san. Never in all my years had I ever come across something that emits chakra, yet not appear on a scan. And there was no other item on the child that could be used to block a chakra signal. Literally speaking Danna-san, the items should not even exist."

The entire room was silent enough that you could hear a pin drop. All the adult villagers knew that Yuri-san was one of the sturdiest medics in the area, due to her role during the war years ago. Very little had the power to make their medic feel fear or unease after **that** experience. For her to intentionally say something frightened her, in public no less, meant that whatever these items were they were dangerous either way.

Suddenly, the front door opened to reveal two figures. One was Chinatsu, the other was the child. One of the villagers exclaimed, "Chinatsu-san, why is the child here?! You know that children are not allowed in the House during meetings!" Some of the other villagers nodded or verbally agreed.

(Usagi's pov)

'The man is scared?' she thought in confusion. She was currently looking at the man who had yelled at Chinatsu, but what she was seeing was not just a man; rather she saw a man with a cloud of purple mist looking at her with eyes filled with fear hovering above him. She blinked before looking at the other people in the building. A few of them were also connected to purple clouds, but most of the people were connected to clouds of blue's and green's, and had eyes of intrigue, curiosity, or seriousness. Mentally shaking her head, she ignored the clouds and turned to Chinatsu.

"Chinatsu-san, where is Yuri-san?" Chinatsu pointed to the only other person standing, at the far end of the hall. "Domo arigatou Chinatsu-san."

Usagi walked down the hall, leaving a now confused and dazed woman asking the villagers how did she get here. Passing the now tense villagers, she finally reached the old lady Yuri-san. Before she could say anything, a wave of emotions swept past her. Looking down, she saw a mirror, wooden block, and a compass innocently sitting on the floor. The clouds around them were black-red, grey, and blue respectively. But the eyes looking back at her were of 'Where-have-you-been!' and 'about time', she narrowed her eyes at them.

"Don't you give me those looks you three, I just woke up." She scolded them and bent over to pick up the items, not noticing the odd looks she was receiving from the villagers. The moment she picked up the items, they glowed with their respective colors and three transparent figures appeared. The red-black figure was an exotic and handsome man in his twenties, with three large scars running from the middle of his forehead to his left cheek. His skin was similar to the soil in color and he had black eyes. His hair was black and tied into a high ponytail. He was dressed in some sort of armor that looked like a cross between a samurai's armor and a monk's robes. He had a huge red and black three-pronged trident with a chain connected at the bottom, the chain loosely tied around his waist. He had no gloves or shoes, allowing anyone to see the claws that had replaced his nails.

The second figure was a woman in her late twenties or early thirties. Her skin was a heavy tan, possibly from many hours in the sun. Her eyes were brown and her hair was a sea-green and cerulean blue mix, with most of her hair combed straight to her mid-back and had two large braids forming a crown over the rest of her hair with sea shells entwined throughout the crown. She wore a weathered dress with two parts; the first was a loose main-body that went to her thighs and had no sleeves, the last part was a slim skirt made of dried sea-weed that went to her knees. She was also bare-foot, and had tattoos of lines and dots on her feet, hands, and cheeks.

The last figure had a feminine face, but the lack of chest said 'think again'. 'His' skin looked more like it was short fur than flesh and was a pale brown. His eyes were a brilliant green and his brown hair was cut evenly with his chin, except for the hair next to his face which reached his shoulders. He wore a green cloak that connected at the heart, reached his upper thighs, and covered only the back portion of his body. It had strange geometric yet organic designs on the edges. He had an outfit consisting of a brown, one-piece 'dress' that went to below the knees and had slits going from the thigh-down. He wore grey shorts that reached his lower thigh and had a buckled belt hanging loosely from his **really** slim waist. He had an ankle bracelet made of woven grass on his left ankle and the tattoos of light brown specks on the back of his legs. And like the other two, he went bare-foot. But what made him really stand out was his face.

For instance, he had horns.

Two of them were growing out of the space where the forehead and temples met.

His nose resembled that of a deer's. Long and narrow with two lines starting at his eyebrows and ending at the sides of the nose, but instead of the nose pointing out at the tip, it resembled a cat's by being flat. His mouth resembled a cat's and there was a small fang visible. His ears were slightly pointed at the tip.

All in all, he looked like a cross between a human and an animal.

The samurai-monk spoke, or more like growled, "So you are the gaki that earned the title of 'Privileged One', eh? You look more like an ahou than a senshi to me."

Usagi narrowed her eyes even further, "May I remind you that I retired from that life, and that this body was not originally my own. OF COURSE I'M GOING TO BE A CHIBI YOU TEINOUSHA!!" she screamed .

**"Now stop this. You both are acting like children**_."_ The tattooed woman scolded in a slight accent.

_"She is right you two. Besides we need to explain what is going on to the people present. It will make things easier for everyone to have some peace of mind."_ The man said in a genderless, monotone.

Usagi looked back to the villagers and saw what he meant. The villagers looked like most of them were ready to have a seizure with the rest already suffering from heart attacks. She felt a sweatdrop form as she finally realized just what she had exactly done.

'This is going to be awkward.' She mused.

(Later)

Danna massaged his temples as he watched Usagi consume at least two adults worth of food in a single serving. He, Usagi, and her 'guardians' were inside the Meeting House. Her guardians had just explained everything to him; and he didn't know whether to feel disbelief or shock.

Usagi was formally a **twenty** year old soldier from the countries far to the west. To save her life from a disease that attacked those specifically with the power of the 'Tsuki no Senshi', her fellow senshi removed her powers. But the result was her both physically and emotionally becoming a child again. Her family would never have to worry about her because, officially, she had **died **months ago from the disease. Her family had publicly buried her body, or so they thought. A fresh corpse had been molded to be her replacement so no one would be the wiser.

What had surprised Danna was that her family never even knew that their first-born daughter had taken the role of a senshi. He had been told that it was for safety purposes, because if both the general public **and** the senshi's family remained in the dark, than there were smaller chances of the senshi's family becoming targets.

Turning to the guardians sitting on either side of Usagi, he asked, "I never did get your names……" The man-beast blinked slowly.

_"I am afraid that we do not have names Danna-san. Due to the fact that we were created from a blood pact, a summoning-contract if you will, we will remain nameless until our contractor gives us names."_ He explained.

Danna nodded before asking, "Could you explain this blood-pact and those items in more detail? I would like to know what I am dealing with." He eyed the items now sitting comfortably next to Usagi.

_"The blood pact is an agreement, or to be more accurate, a contract. Upon placing the contract onto the contractor's flesh, the magic within the contract will search the world and afterlife for spirits that can coincided with the natural affinity, personality, or soul of the contractor. Upon their agreement to the contract, the spirits will take residence within items holding a connection to the contractor._

_Once the bond becomes strong enough to give us physical form, our bodies shape themselves to match the forms our contractor would be comfortable with but still retain signs of our origins. I for example, am a spirit of the earth itself. The element of earth is considered to be seen as 'the shield' of the elemental circle, and Usagi was known more for her merciful and defensive nature than her power; which made her title as 'the soldier of sanctuary' more than accurate. The block of wood is what will serve as my medium to my contractor. "_

The samurai went next, "I agreed to the pact because the ahou had three things that made her acceptable to my kind. One: by age sixteen she had lived, fought, and had led her army through five major wars; all within the span of two to three years." Danna chocked on the air he had just inhaled, but the samurai continued without pause. "Two:she had risen to a level of power that gave her enough strength to fight on par with a creature that even the gods trembled in fear of and **win**." Danna could feel his skin pale. "And three: before her 'retirement' began, she was blessed by the 'soldier of death and destruction' with a power normally reserved for the soldier and the god of death, Shinigami. The power to walk within the border between the living and the dead, or better known as the Realm of the Hell Mirror." Danna was now sweating lightly as he glanced at the gruesome mirror.

The samurai snorted, "It's not hard to figure out what sort of spirit I am. I was formally an inu youkai from the realm you ningens call Hell. Truthfully, the ahou is lucky. I am a great deal more tolerant of ningens than most of my kind."

The woman spoke next, "**I am a spirit of the sea maidens. I heard the calling of the pact and agreed to come because of a prophesy laid down by the Goddess of the Sea, better known as the Great Mistress to my kind. The Great Mistress had prophesized that a child of the ancient gods would come soon, and that she would carry the power to change the fates of others. The Great Mistress spoke to all of my kindred and told us that when the time came, she would need guidance in her travels. As those who have always both nurtured and destroyed, my people have felt empathy to this child."**

The woman sighed before speaking again."**In a sense, the number of guardians and their natures are like portraits of the child's life. The youkai to symbolize her power, the bloodshed, and tragedy she had to live with as a soldier and as an incarnation of two of the High Elements. Then there is the earth spirit symbolizing the child's protective and life-giving nature. Then there is my part, as a daughter of the ocean and a servant of the Great Mistress. I represent the fate of her life as a ningen and as a woman. She can become a nurturer and a destroyer in the times to come."**

Danna thought this over for a few minutes before he turned back to the horned being, "Before the child entered the House, Yuri-san showed us the items that you all were connected to. Can you give me a more detailed explanation about why they were emitting emotions and chakra?"

The spirit nodded, "_The block of wood is my medium and it is the vessel that represents my element earth and nature. The same can be said of the mirror and compass, the Hell mirror represents fire and darkness due to its origins and the compass was created by an ancient sea goddess so it represented the element water. In time it will become unnecessary for us to need the mediums to keep us grounded to the ningen world, demo until then our contractor needs to keep it on her at all times to let the contract completely seal itself. _

_To explain the emotions and chakra it is very simple. The chakra is our mental energies mixing with her physical energy. Once the contract is sealed the chakra will cease to exist and the items will just be vessels for us to hide in when need be. The emotions are faint imprints of the items creators or, in the case of the mirror, where it was created._" Danna gazed into space as he processed all the information he had just been told. He knew that he would not be able to tell all of this information to the rest of the villagers without someone causing a panic. He sighed with weariness, age, and resignation. He was going to have a field day thinking up a story that could explain everything yet not all of it.

The room settled into a calm silence as Usagi finished up the udon Chinatsu had made her. Usagi had apologized to her earlier when she was told that she had placed a 'genjutsu' on her unintentionally. Chinatsu had laughed at her and told her that no harm had been done before telling her to expect a great feast, since the sea maiden let it slip that she ate enough to feed five people.

Usagi yawned. The sea maiden noticed and rose from her seat and picked Usagi up, intending to make sure her contractor got some sleep. Before they left the room, Usagi mumbled, "Arigato Kaiko-neechan."

The now named Kaiko paused and looked at Usagi with surprise, but smiled softly. They both left the room without another word.

(End)

Chapter 4 is done!

"I tied one on" is a phrase that my mother told me about, basically you drink an entire bottle of vodka or some other high level alcohol drink without stopping. I have absolutely no idea where she got it and I'm not asking.

Pairings vote:

Usagi/Gaara: 9

Usagi/Naruto: 5 ½

Usagi/Sasuke: 3

Usagi/Itachi: 1

Gaara is in the lead! Next chapter is when the winner will be announced so send the reviews!


	5. Chapter 5

Umiki: Gomen no sai!! I haven't been able to update recently because of midterms! But fret not my faithful readers, for I have been working on the next chapters of RotCS with flourish. I've already finished chapter six, but it needs some tuning before I post it. Chapter seven is in the making as we speak!

Also the winner of who gets Usa-chan has been decided! The results will be at the end of the chapter.

Now onto chapter five!

1/16/09

Just like all the others deemed needing revisions, this one has had a few things changed too.

Release of the Caged Soul

Umiki

Life in the village of Fuka Gai had fallen into a pattern of sorts. The adults would wake up around sunrise to begin their work in the fields or start the household chores, while the children would wake up a few hours later with hungry stomachs. Well almost all the children…..

"KKKYYYYAAAAA!! I'm soooooo lllaaaaaattee!!"

All the adults looked up from their work before shaking their heads with laughter as they heard a hurricane rush through the village. This had somehow become a part of the pattern over the years, yet it still ceased to amuse everyone who saw or heard it.

The 'hurricane' currently going through the village was in fact an eight year old girl, followed by three animals. The first animal was a leopard, the second a snake about ten feet long coiled around the leopard's neck, and finally a black wolf that was twice the normal size.

The girl slowed down as a corner came up, making her features become a little clearer than just a blur. Anyone looking would only be able to see that she had slightly tanned skin and platinum-blonde hair before she became a blur again. Many villagers simply stepped aside as the girl flew passed them.

A few minutes later the hurricane hit the brakes and came to a screeching stop in front of the village clinic. The girl rushed to the door and slammed it open, breathing like she had just run the distance to Konoha and back in a single day. She held the door as if it was a lifeline, trembling from the effort it took to stand. "….Go…men…no..sai…Yu….ri…..san……I….over……slept…..again." she wheezed. She faintly heard her guardians walk up to her, barely even sweating from the marathon they had just run.

Usagi's eyebrow twitched, 'Stamina freaks.'

Yuri-san was internally having a laughing fest as she turned to the door of her clinic. Giving Usagi a stern look, she pointed to the back and said, "Get to work. We have to complete this batch before tomorrow if we both want to get paid." Usagi nodded tiredly before dragging her still winded body to the back. The animals followed after her and as they entered the building, they transformed from animals into the familiar forms of Usagi's spirit guides.

No one knew how or why they could suddenly become animals, and they were keeping their mouths shut, so it was drooped.

Yuri-san watched as they went into the back, shaking her head with bemusement. She really didn't know what she was thinking when she agreed to take Usagi in as an apprentice, but she felt no regret in the decision.

Although it was humorous seeing Danna's jaw drop like a sack of potatoes.

Usagi had grown quickly in the art of battle, which was not surprising considering her past. She was mid chunnin in terms of overall rank. Her taijutsu was just below chunin, mostly because while her new body had never been in a real fight her brain still sent signals to the muscles. Of course her body had not been prepared for some of the moves her brain told her to do; the memory pains Usagi still experienced from trying to bend backwards to avoid a hit was an unwelcomed reminder.

Her ninjutsu consisted of the basics, many assistance jutsu, and two elemental jutsu. Strangely, she was unable to create a single bunshin, but her henge had been so life-like that Yuri-san had actually been startled when Usagi dropped her henge.

Her genjutsu was only genin, but her stealth was nearly off the charts! Usagi didn't know it but her stealth was the type that even the ANBU Black Ops had to train extra hard for. Her kenjutsu was on par with most chunnin, but only if she had the right weapon in her hands.

She had also grown into an attractive girl, most likely traces of her former appearance. Her hair had become golden with silver streaks, and reached to her shoulders when in a ponytail. Her eyes were cerulean blue but if her emotions reached a high level they would become black. Her choice in cloths consisted of the 'mixed' style, or the traditional elements combined with the western principles. Her skin was tan and her body was in top condition from training for hours on end. She was still short for her age, around 4"9'. But what she lacked in size was more than made up with her kindness.

Yuri-san sighed.

If someone were to tell her two years ago that a six year old girl would impact the village so easily, she would have laughed it off. Yet with every day that went by since Usagi came, she saw the child do things that many had considered unbelievable. She had warmed the hearts of those who had closed themselves from the people. She had taught children using her own experiences as games to help them learn what was most important in life.

To top it off, she had somehow gotten Fuka Gai to become a respected producer of goods to the local populations. Some advice here, a little push there, and all of a sudden they were growing, making, and producing 30 percent more profits.

However, what had truly startled everyone in Fuka Gai was not Usagi's fighting skills or her magnetic nature, but rather the fact that Usagi could communicate with plants. Usagi would spend much of her free time talking to the flora growing in and around the village.

Usagi later told her that the flora was in fact telling her what was happening in the other countries. To her utter shock, the plants seemed to form a natural information system that was practically unheard of in any country because of one simple fact. No one would suspect that nature itself would be spying on them. So even the most secrete of information could be learned of if there was a rooted plant nearby. The only problem with the system was that it took time to bring information from long distances and would often be skewed by other factors. Because of this, Usagi mostly stuck with things happening within a forty mile basis.

Suddenly Yuri-san heard the startled yelp of her apprentice followed by the sound of metal hitting the floor. She sweatdropped as she heard the sound of something hitting Usagi's head, generating another yelp.

She shuck her head in laughter at her student's natural clumsiness.

Yuri-san's expression became more somber as she glanced at the box hiding underneath the front counter. This was probably the best yet worst thing she could do for Usagi. Good because of what it would symbolize of Usagi's status, but terrible because of what would come to pass upon receiving her gift.

(Flashback)

"_Yuri-san, I have a proposal." Usagi stated. Yuri-san looked up from her work._

"_I am listening." She replied. _

"_In return for my apprenticeship, I will work for free in your shop as your assistant. I will train myself till I drop if that is what it will takes to complete the task you set for me. What you have me do and for how long will not be questioned in any shape or form. Demo there is only one thing I ask of this deal," Usagi paused than continued, "at the end of my apprenticeship to you, I will be allowed to leave the village without fuss."_

_Yuri-san raised an eyebrow, "Why?"_

"_Because there are those who will need me in the times to come. The moment I open the compass," motioning to the compass tied to her belt, "I will have to follow it. What I do is of own choosing, demo the path that is laid before me is what I must follow." _

_(End flashback)_

'Everyone who knows about the deal knew that this would come to pass. Demo, this is something that we will all have to just accept.' She thought glumly as she dragged her hand along the box.

(Later)

Usagi groaned as she stretched her back like a cat's. She had finally finished the batch of remedies just before dusk and she was tired. Glancing over to her guardians, she smiled at the sight of Naraku snoozing with Kaiko leaning on his shoulder while Daichi meditated Indian-style.

In the span of two years, all of them had become a make-shift family. Daichi, the earth spirit whose wisdom and patience knew no bounds, had become the grandfatherly figure to Usagi. Kaiko, the sea maiden, was the big sister who could be both kind and cruel depending on her mode. The inu-youkai Naraku was the overprotective brother who chased anyone so much as looking at her wrong with his infamous trident.

Usagi's smile grew as the thought of her other friends came to mind. Danna had become the distant uncle, giving advice here and there. Chinatsu was the fussy aunt who always double checked everything to make sure they were in order. And Yuri-san was her sensei and grandmother in every sense of the word.

Usagi's smile waned.

Yuri-san had in truth been frightened of her because of the constant fluctuation of her chakra, the chakra of her guardians, and the chakra of her most dangerous possession. It was only after Usagi had taken a near-death blow for her during a bandit raid that Yuri-san had treated her with respect. Soon after that day, Yuri-san had agreed to take her in as her apprentice.

Usagi almost jumped when she heard the sound of thunder in the distance and turned to the window to see dark clouds slinking over the town. Shaking her head, Usagi rose from her seat and began to put everything away. Lifting one of the jars, Usagi peered at its see-through glass to see some deadly nightshade and smiled.

Usagi would never say it, but her time spent as Yuri-san's apprentice had become among the most tresured moments during her new life. Sure her make-shift family made her happy but the sense of worth she received from becoming Yuri-san's apprentice was a strange yet welcomed feeling. Learning all about how to make remidies and elixers, learning how to identify what plant would be best to use if stuck in the wild, even how to use raw materials to help with illness and injury.

Of coarse it had been a little hard for her to harm living plants at first considering that she could hear their cries of pain, but after much compramising and even more patience she had come to an agreement. She did as little as possible to bring harm to nature and take only what she needed and in exchange they would not torment her with their cries.

With a heaving sigh, Usagi lifted the cart filled with her portion of tomarrows remidies and set it with the other remidies in the back. As she dusted her hands Usagi began to think of how much time had passed since the bargin had been made. Very soon her sensei would have to complete her part of the bargin as Usagi had fullfiled the two year requirment for an apprenticeship. Yuri-san had known that Usagi would one day leave the village; Usagi herself had told her that there was someone out in the world that needed her. Someone who was slowly dying as they continued to be surrounded by hate and despair...

Usagi sighed as she heard the sound of thunder draw closer. "It's going to rain soon." She whispered.

(Days later)

"Usagi-chan."

Usagi looked away from the sight of the rain that had remained constant since three days ago, and turned her head so that she was staring at Chinatsu.

"There is something waiting for you in the tea room….Yuri-san brought it with her." Chinatsu whispered.

Usagi felt her heart stir.

Slowly standing up, she walked out of the room and followed Chinatsu to the tea room. There she found everyone, including Danna, sitting quietly around Yuri-san.

Closing the door, Usagi walked till she stood before Yuri-san and kneeled. Yuri-san stared at her with piercing eyes, searching for something. After what seemed like forever, she ceased her stare and glanced down at the long box lying before her. With a deep breath, Yuri-san spoke.

"For two years you have listened to my words, obeyed my teachings, and followed my art. Now it is time for you to use all that I have taught you and forge your own path. With all present as witnesses of these words, I give you both my blessings and two gifts." Opening the box, she lifted out a weapon that resembled a katana but the tsuka (1) was close, almost exactly, to the same size as the saya (2). The saya was black with a vine of leaves and thorns encircling it.

Handing it to Usagi, Usagi unsheathed it to inspect the blade. It was a katana blade over two shaku (3) long and it had the kanji for "Daughter of the Ancient Gods" on one side and the image of a thunder beast on the other side. Usagi almost snorted at the irony.

During her previous life, she recalled that she had been terrified of thunder and lightning. But in this life, it turned out to be her elemental affinity. She remembered when Naraku had joked that all they needed now was someone attuned to wind and they would have an entire element circle.

Yuri-san spoke again, "The weapon is a nagamaki, it is essentially a cross between a katana and a naginata. It has the elegance of the katana and the flexibility of the naginata, giving you more room for moves that would have been difficult on a katana. I have always noticed that you favored both the sword and the spear. So I decided to find a weapon that was similar to both weapon types, and after much searching I was able to find the designs for this weapon. And you told me once that whichever weapon you choose to wield would form a bond with you, thus making it easier and quicker to learn how to use it. With your natural ability to wield those types of weapons, I have no doubt that you will become a fierce opponent."

Usagi bowed as much as she could while sitting down. This was considered an honored event to any apprenticeship, receiving an item from one's sensei after the two-year period. Because she would be leaving the village she had called home, her sensei had given her an item that symbolized that the master had taught the apprentice to the extent that they could not be taught anymore in the ninja arts.

It also meant that she could now leave the village she had called home.

Usagi felt sorrowful as she glanced at the people she considered family. This may be the last time she saw them again, because the moment she stepped out of the village the compass would point her in the direction of where she would be needed.

Yuri-san continued, "The second gift I give to you as my former-apprentice, are supplies for your journey. I took the liberty of digging up a special piece that you will find useful." Placing a large box in-front of Usagi, she lifted the lid and removed the top article.

The article was a hooded robe (4) of high quality. It was black with a white lotus flower surrounded by a blue dragon on the back. It barely reached the bottom of her feet and the tips of her fingers. But something felt odd about the material, she had never come across a material that felt solid yet silky.

Yuri-san noticed her confusion. "The material is a special cloth made only by a clan that disappeared decades ago. It was a gift to my great-grandmother for helping the clan before they disappeared, or more likely went into hiding. The cloth will not age or become worn from use. You can imagine how you want it to fit your body and it will change itself to accommodate your desired shape. And the greatest aspect of the cloth is that when you send chakra through it, the cloth can become as hard as steel. It is the treasure of my house and I wish for you to have it."

Usagi's head shot up to stare at Yuri-san in shock and surprise. Before she could deny the priceless gift Yuri-san beat her to the punch. "Do not try to return it to me. I am the last of my house and I am far too old to even think of having children now. My line will die with me when the time comes, demo **as** the last of the line I have full authority to give this to you. So accept it with grace and keep your mouth shut!"

Usagi's mouth shut closed with resignation. There was no fighting Yuri-san once she made her mind up. Setting the robe aside, she pulled the rest of the items out of the box. In it were many of the standard ninja items. At the bottom of the box was a pouch and a scroll; picking up the pouch she heard the sound of metal pieces clinking. Looking to Yuri-san, she sent a silent question.

Yuri-san replied, "There are 100 mon, 10 momme and 14 ryo in the pouch (5). The pouch has a fuuijn on it so it can hold a great deal of money, but making it appear small. And the scroll is for containing multiple items, a common tool used by ninjas."

Usagi stared at the woman she had called her sensei for two years before she bowed so far that her head was resting on the floor. She stayed like this for two minutes before Yuri-san forcefully righted her, a light blush on her face. Danna chuckled at the flustered medic while Chinatsu giggled into her hand. The guardians simply watched everything with trepidation.

Danna decided to speak then, "Sa, this means that you will leave the village tomorrow?"

Usagi nodded, "Hai, I have been training and preparing myself for this day for years. I cannot waste any more time than necessary." Turning to her guardians, she continued, "I will need everything prepared for departure by sunrise."

They nodded in acceptance and vanished without a peep. Usagi turned her attention back to the three ningens sitting in front of her. Slowly standing, she walked over to Yuri-san and hugged her. Yuri-san stiffened than relaxed as the girl-yet-woman showed her one last shred of gratitude. Doing the same with Danna and Chinatsu, she felt her heart cry as the full weight of the event settled onto her shoulders. The moment she left the village, her path would be decided for her.

She knew the Fates could not control every aspect of her life after making the bargain with the Queen. The few times they could intervene only included the path she had to take, that was it. This gave Usagi the freedom to choose **what** she did when she arrived and who she met. But the Fates could only start this the moment Usagi opened the compass, which would be her deciding factor in where she needed to go. Until then, she was a blind spot on the Fates radar.

And she had a feeling they would use whatever chance they got to insure she followed some form of their plan.

Before Usagi left for her room, Yuri-san said something that surprised everyone there. "Usagi, before I leave I want you to do something for me. As a last order from your sensei if nothing else." Usagi nodded her head, telling Yuri-san to continue. "……….I want you to call me by my **real** name. Not my title, not the name the villagers call me, but my own personal name."

The entire room was so silent that you could hear the grass outside blowing in the wind. Usagi stared at her former-sensei with pure shock and uncertainty as the request repeated over and over again inside her head.

Yuri-san's real name was a subjet of taboo to those that knew it because of the memories that were brought up by it. Yuri-san had once taken part in the last great war with Iwa and had ended up becoming a broken shell of a human who killed without mercy. When she had been offically declared MIA by the oblivious Iwa, she had chosen to restart her life in the small village that was Fuka Gai with a new name and everything.

'Demo...' Maybe the reason she wanted to hear it is because it showed that the unmerciful killer was more than a killer but also a teacher who had given at least one person the hope and power to survive in this world. With that thought in mind Usagi opened her mouth.

For a moment, Yuri-san thought she would be denied before Usagi spoke. "I will miss you…….. Rasou Mitsuri."

Usagi then left the room to go prepare for her long journey and, in doing so, missed the sight of the once legendary Crimson Medic cry.

(The next day)

The sun had just peaked over the mountains when Usagi gave her final goodbyes to the three she considered family. Many from the village had heard about her leaving and had already given their own goodbyes; from the pats on the back from the elders to the tearful cries of the children that had come to adore her.

She was wearing the cloak over her cloths, making it loose enough to hide her equipment and weapons. She had gloves with metal sewn at the knuckles and the back of her hand, but cleverly disguised by the leather overlapping it. She wore the metal sole sandals Danna had given her on her birthday, and the wooden mask Chinatsu had given her for her birthday as well. The mask was black with the kanji for lightning on the forehead and two ice-blue lightning bolts forming from her eyes and ending on either side of the mouth. From the mouth were two fangs that made one think of a **very** large cat. And the eyes were painted to look like green cat eyes as well.

Chinatsu had told her it reminded her of the old folk tales of a thunder beast that once roamed the forests of the continent, and considering raiton was her affinity it seemed perfect for her.

Her guardians were in their animal forms, with Kaiko secured around her neck and the other two on either side of her. They would attract too much attention in their other forms.

Chinatsu was heavily crying as she hugged her 'chibi' for dear life. She had housed, feed, and clothed the girl ever since she had come to their village, for her it was like she was losing a daughter. Danna stood off to the side, he was not the type to do something mushy or emotionally heart moving. Yuri-san was watching everything with a small smile, she had already said her goodbyes to her former apprentice so she let Chinatsu bleed her heart out.

After five more minutes Usagi was released from the death-hug. Turing to Danna and Yuri-san, she bowed low before turning her back to them. Lifting the compass, she opened the lid.

The arrow spun rapidly for a few seconds before stopping with a jerk in the eastern direction. Mentally looking at a map she saw where the compass was pointing. "Cloud Country…….Oh damn."

The sound of her family's laughter was not very comforting.

(Time-skip, 1 year)

The Land of Suna was considered one of the most environmentally protected areas in all of the Shinobi Countries. The vast desert stretching to all corners of the country combined with the immense heat, ferocious sandstorms, and scant sources of water made the country a natural fortress. If you got lost or ran out of water in this country, chances were you would never be found alive again.

And to add to it all, the village of Suna itself was so camouflaged to look like it was part of the desert that it was nigh impossible to find unless you took a marked path to get there or you had gone there before.

It was one of the reasons why Suna had so few wars reaching into their boundaries. No army would enter a desert that hid the hidden village to such an extreme degree just to invade it.

But this defense was also a double-edged sword.

It was harder for merchants and travelers to reach Suna than they would in the other villages, thus Suna's economy was at a dangerous low. To top it all off, the Daimyou was sending his services to Konoha over Suna, nearly crippling it and sending it to the brink.

Because of this, Suna was willing to let strangers with no official papers into its walls if it meant that they could get some services. They would not question anybody about their business in Suna……….even when the person coming into Suna was obviously of suspicious nature.

Which is why the two chunnin guarding the gates to Suna didn't even glance at the cloaked figure surrounded by two huge animals as he walked calmly into the village. From the corner of their eyes, they saw a blue dragon encircling a lotus and mentally thanked any Kami listening that they had not tried to stop the now identified genkin (6), the Ryuuhasu (7) or, as some of the more fearful whispered, the Raikouyajuu (8).

It was rumored that the two different titles were used for a reason. That if you only saw his cloak than he had no intention of harming you, but if he let you see his mask than you were not expected to live within the next twenty-four hours. And no one worth their salt would dare get in the way of the high ranking genkin if they could help it.

Both chunnins felt nothing short of relief when the figure disappeared into the crowd.

(Usagi's pov)

'I wonder why the compass wanted me to come here of all places? Kumo was for the training, Iwa was for saving the Daimyou's only son, and Kusa……..just forget about that Usagi. That is something you don't want to remember.' Usagi thought fervently.

She weaved through the crowd with no difficulty, ignoring the strange looks she and her guardians were getting. Some recognized her and stepped out of her way, others didn't even notice she existed. For Usagi, it made no difference to her. She had learned that becoming a genkin required that you get used to people avoiding you for obvious reasons.

She continued her trek to the nearest inn when she spotted something out of place. There in the park near the swings, was a lone red-headed child. From here she could tell that he was at least four years younger than her, making him about five years old if her physical age was an indication, and she could see him holding a teddy bear reverently. Looking at him, she also saw a cloud of black, red, and brown smoke containing eyes filled with nothing but despair, loneliness, and depression. He was looking over at the children playing ball not far away, and she wondered why he was not playing with them.

Suddenly, the ball headed straight for the boy and before it hit him, a wall of sand shot up to stop the ball from hitting him. As the boy tried to give the ball back, the children ran away shouting 'youkai' and 'bakamono'. The boy began crying with true sadness as he clutched his teddy bear.

'I think I know why I'm here now.' Usagi thought sadly as she noticed the glares being sent in the boy's direction. Summoning a tad bit of killing intent, she sent it to the civilians that were glaring the hardest. Almost immediately the area gained some space as the civilians backed away from the cloaked figure. Walking up to the boy, she kneeled close to him. Seeing that he hadn't noticed her, she decided to speak.

"Daijoubu ka?"(9) The boy's head sprang up to look at the frightening figure who was kneeling a respectable distance from him. He looked past him (10) to see two large animals sitting close by.

"Daijoubu ka?" the genderless voice asked again, regaining his attention. He hiccupped as he tried to speak back to the person.

"Daijoubu (hic). It's just (sob) no one wants to play (hic) with me." Tears were falling more fiercely as he said this. The person stared at him for a few seconds before he did something that shocked the boy, he held out his hand as the other picked up the ball.

"If they don't want to play with such an adorable little boy then they don't know what they're missing…….If you want to, I'll play with you the whole day so you feel better, okay?" The boy stared at the person as if he wasn't even there before shakingly asking,

"Y-you want t-to play with m-me?" the figure nodded and extended his hand more for the boy. Before she touched him though, the sand sprang up to grab her arm. The boy looked fearful and desperate as she drew her arm in for a closer look. When she spoke, the boy was once again shocked by her words,

"Very cool. I've never come across an automatic defense like this before, nor in someone so young." Turning her head to look at him she asked, "This is not why the children run away from you is it? 'Cause if it is, then they're a bunch of bakas."

The boy was looking at her as if she had given him the winning lottery ticket. And before she knew that he had moved, she felt the boy hugging her for dear life. Wrapping her arms around the boy, she soothed him by rubbing his back softly as his tremors slowed. Usagi could feel the sand was forming a barrier between every inch that she came into contact with and felt a dash of pity for the boy. His automatic defense was truely amazing, but it was clear that the boy's social life was exchanged as a result of having the defense.

After five minutes, she separated from him and stood up, his hand grasping hers tightly. Turning to look at him, she said, "I never did get your name." The boy blinked then smiled so softly that she almost missed it.

"Sabuku no Gaara."

(End)

Chapter #5! Now for all those holding their breaths: (drum role)

Gaara: 11

Naruto: 5 1/2

Sasuke: 3 1/2

Itachi: 3

AND THE WINNER BY A LANDSLIDE IS GAARA! Thank you to all who praise my works. You have no idea how happy I am at the popularity of my fics. Truthfully I was worried about how some people would take to some of the original ideas I used. :

(1)Tsuka: handle

(2)Saya: sheath

(3) A single shaku is about the equivalent of a foot long.

(4) Think the robes from the Nobody's of Kingdom Hearts II

(5)To explain the mon, momme, and ryo, I got the idea from another fanfic who's name I can't remember. The coins were used as the currency of old Japan, although I'm only using three of the coins from the whole system. The Japanese-English rates are fiction, but I did try to make it reasonable.

100 mon equals 1 momme, and 5 momme equals 1 ryo.

Mon is considered to be the chump change, the money civilians would use for small daily things like food, toys, and other such things. The coins are replicas of the Chinese square-holed coin, with a single coin worth 10 mon. 20 mon is equivalent to 1 dollar, so for a bowel of ramen at Ichiraku's it would cost about 120 mon or 6 dollars.

1 momme coin is the equivalent of a 5 dollar bill in my fic. They are the same size as quarters. They are the coins used more often when doing larger businesses such as weaponry, housing, ect. A set of kunai would be about 3 momme, a shuriken set at 2.5 momme, and a senbon set at 1.5 momme. Missions at D rank more often than not use this currency as payment.

Ryo are the 25 dollar equivalent. This is the money most used in missions ranking at C or higher. An average C-rank mission would cost about 300-400 dollars or 12-16 ryo.

I'll post the mission ranking and pay in a later chapter

(6) genkin/ mercenary

(7)Ryuuhasu/ Dragon Lotus

(8)Raikouyajuu/ Lightning Beast

(9) it means "are you alright?", and saying it without the 'ja' part means 'I am alright'.

(10) To those who do not know that Usagi is really a female, they will perceive her as a man. Because of this I will be moving back and forth when referring to Usagi's gender. So don't worry if you find it hard to notice if it's Usagi that their talking about. It will only last for a few chapters.


	6. Chapter 6

Umiki: Hello everyone! Sorry if I'm not updating quickly enough; but I'm not only suffering from a small writer's block but also from having to update my other fics as well as writing down all of my new ideas for some of my fresh fics.

I'll try to update as soon as possible, but I can't promise anything.

(Note: To all those who are disgusted or shocked about the main pairing's circumstance

I know that some of you are disappointed with Usagi being paired with Gaara, and I know that some of you are probably thinking I'm nuts having Usagi be four years older than Gaara (or was it 17 years?). Anyway understand that for my fic to work, I need Usagi to be older than Naruto's generation.

Besides compared to some of the fics I've come across in the Naruto section, the woman being only four years older than the boy is nothing compared to the woman being ten years older.

Also you need to remember that this is Usagi. She is not the type to use a person's heart against them, even with her new outlook and attitude.)

And one more thing, THANK YOU EVERYONE!! This fic has now officially had 3000 hits!! TTTT (tears of joy). Never in my wildest of dreams did I think that I would have a fic as well liked as RotCS!

1/16/09

Hi Umiki here, I've put the finishing touches on my revised chapter and so-o to make sure you don't miss anything new your going to have to look for them! ^__^ And I'm not telling what they are, but they can be both big and small changes so keep your eyes peeled.

Now on with the show!

Chapter 6

Umiki

When Yashamaru had been called by the Yondaime Kazekage to meet with him, he knew what his leader was planning to do before he even stepped foot within the Kage Tower. He had also known that the Kazekage would not have called him to do this unless he thought that the situation had become desperate enough.

He was the only one who had a chance to complete this mission successfully. The only one who had the slimmest of chances to kill his nephew Gaara.

As he stood before the Kazekage, his brother-in-law, he could see the stress lines at the corner of the Yondaime's blood-shot eyes and felt sympathy for him. Contrary to popular belief, the Yondaime did care about his children, extremely so. That was why he had decided to distance himself from his children to make it obvious that using them as a bargaining chip would be pointless. This also served to help the Kazekage be prepared to sacrifice any of them should it come to it.

This was more so for Gaara then the other two. When it had been decided that his wife would be the one to carry the Shukaku incarnate, the Kazekage had steeled himself and forced his heart to die in order to not care for the boy. He had known that it was possible that the boy would be a failure and the Council would order his death.

The Council had much power in these desperate times and if they decided to, they could overthrow the Yondaime and put someone else on the Kage's pedestal should the Yondaime not follow their demands.

Returning his attention to his leader, the Kazekage showed no emotion as he began to speak, "Yashamaru, are you prepared to complete this mission for your village." It was not a question.

"Hai Lord Kazekage-sama. I will follow the will of the village when called upon." Yashamaru replied.

The Kazekage's eyes softened minutely, "Yashamaru, if you do not feel up to this than you do not need to take this mission. If you do not want it, I will allow you to refuse this mission just this once."

Yashamaru's reply was instant, "Iie Kazekage-sama. This gives me a chance to take vengeance for my sister." There really was no other choice for him.

The Kazekage almost sighed, "Very well, your mission is to-" he was interrupted mid way by a scared looking jounin. The Kazekage sent an annoyed look to the jounin, he had made it clear that he did not want to be interrupted during this meeting. Before he could demand an explanation from the now kneeling jounin, the jounin sent a look that **begged** the Kage to listen to what he had to say.

For whatever reason, the Kage decided to hear him out. "Speak, and this better be good."

The jounin did not disappoint, "Lord Kazekage-sama! It's Gaara!"

The room temperature dropped, "Continue."

"It is unbelievable my lord, demo I saw it with my own eyes. Gaara was playing with someone, and his sand has not once attacked the person for coming near him!"

In the silence that came afterwards, the sound of faint laughter could be heard in the distance.

(In the park)

Usagi laughed as Gaara pouted. She was only an inch away from the boy and was holding the ball a foot away from his reach. They had been playing all sorts of games for nearly two hours, completely ignoring the looks and sounds of shock and disbelief the civilians and shinobi were sending them as they watched what was considered impossible.

Her guardians, or at least two of them since Kaiko had to hide because of her reptilian weakness to extreme heat or cold, were watching from the sidelines. They had also played with the boy, Daichi more than Naraku, and had decided to keep an eye on them as they rested.

Back with the two children, Usagi was now the pouting one as she watched Gaara's sand hand the ball to the smiling boy. Suddenly smirking, Usagi ran up to Gaara and taped his shoulder, "Tag your it!"

Gaara seemed to understand what that meant and tried to run after her, but soon stopped. Usagi stayed ten feet away from him as she narrowed her eyes in suspicion. He smiled at her and her eyes widened as she jumped away from him. Immediately afterward a strand of sand had appeared where she had been standing.

Usagi pouted, though no one could see it since she never took her mask off. "No fair Gaara-kun! You used your sand as an extension, you won't even need to move if you keep that up!" she yelled at him, dodging his sand left and right as she did so. Gaara just smiled at her in response.

Suddenly Gaara's sand ceased trying to catch her as he stared at the space behind her, his face clear of any outward emotion. Usagi sent her 'aura radar' out to see who was behind her.

The aura belonged to someone with Kage strength, so she had to assume it was the Kazekage. The emotions he emitted were unease, weariness, and suspicion; but no violence could be seen within the mass of colors. She decided to address their visitor.

"You are the Lord Kazekage, ne? I admit it is flattering that a Kage would come to visit me, demo I consider it rude when anyone is interrupting my free-time." She said, her tone becoming cold as she finished talking. She could feel the auras of hidden shinobi tense at the blunt manner she spoke to their Kage. Gaara was looking at her as if she had grown another head.

The Kazekage ignored her underlining message, and stepped forward. "I am here for Gaara, B-rank genkin Ryuuhasu."

Usagi turned to stare at him, making sure he did not see her mask. She reserved her mask only for targets she was meant to kill, and the Kazekage was not a target…..yet.

"I promised Gaara-kun that I would play with him all day, and the sun still has two more hours before it becomes night. When the sun is no longer visible, then I will let Gaara-kun go with you.

Until then my lord, please be patient. If you wish to play with Gaara-kun, you're more than welcome to join." She told him.

Returning her attention to Gaara, she took a step forward but was interrupted by the Yondaime.

"Kusa is willing to pay a high price for your head."

She stood very still, and when a wind blew by not even the cloak moved an inch. Every ninja tensed, preparing themselves for a fight.

Suddenly, the two animals walked to the Ryuuhasu's side and out of nowhere a hebi appeared in front of Ryuuhasu.

What happened next nearly sent them into shock.

The animals slowly morphed into human-like figures. The former hebi walked next to Gaara and stood protectively over him. The other two stared at the Kazekage with gazes promising nothing but pain and torture should he come close.

The Ryuuhasu turned completely to look at the Kazekage. With a voice that spoke of warning, violence, wisdom, and something even he could not recognize, the Ryuuhasu stated,

"Yondaime Kazekage, I only make threats when I myself have been threatened. You have just threatened my life, so I warn you now. There is a reason the Kusakage now considers me a figure of terror. There is a reason he put a flee-on-sight order on my head.

_Do you really wish to personally experience the horror that even the Kusakage now fears above all others_?"

The sky had darkened and wind was howling in all directions, yet not a single string on the Ryuuhasu was moving. The two beings standing beside Ryuuhasu remained in place, waiting for the moment they would be required. Gaara was clutching his teddy bear and staying close to the kneeling Kaiko.

By now every ninja in Suna was surrounding Ryuuhasu and their Kage. They were holding their breaths as the killing intent screamed that the genkin meant business. To those who knew of the Ryuuhasu's code, they were on high alert for any sign of him revealing his mask. The moment he did, he meant to kill.

The genkin and Kage were staring each other down, neither willing to give up. The winds were becoming fiercer the longer they stood their ground, with chakra filling the very air around the genkin. Soon small pieces of the buildings could be seen coming off from the pressure and strength the winds were creating. Many of the shinobi had to use chakra to remain rooted to the surface they were on for fear that they would be swept away.

If they didn't let up soon Suna would be torn apart.

Before it came to that though, both of them felt clumps of sand grab them and heard a voice desperately yelling at them.

"Onegai!! Yamete!(1) No more fighting!"

The winds died and almost everyone there was ready to breathe a sigh of relief when the sands finally returned to the earth. Though some of the ninja were still tense as the genkin turned his back to the Kage and walked slowly to the crying Gaara. Kneeling before him, she did something that shocked everyone who witnessed it.

She hugged him. And not an inch of sand rose up to stop her.

"Gomen Gaara-kun. I should have considered how you would feel in a situation like this."

Gaara's tears slowed unnoticeably, the shock of someone actually holding him without his barriers still holding his mind. 98 percent of the witnesses had hanging jaws and bugged out eyes. The remaining 2 percent were watching the whole thing with calculative minds. The Ryuuhasu's behavioral patterns were beginning to make them wonder just who the genkin really was, not to mention the three 'people' watching the hidden ninjas like hawks.

Usagi however….

On the outside, Usagi was trying to comfort the boy, but inside she was banging her head against a mental wall as she did a mantra of 'baka, baka, baka'. She knew once she left Suna, she was going to have a **long** training session involving controlling herself whenever Kusa was mentioned. She was mentally 23 years old for the love of Kami! She was better than this!

'Although regaining the emotional state of a child probably had something to do with my pitiable control.' She dryly thought.

Ceasing the hug, Usagi wiped Gaara's face of any remaining tears. The gesture made the Kazekage narrow his eyes in wariness.

The gesture was similar to one he saw mothers' use when their children cried. For a genkin, a soldier who must be willing to become more cold-hearted than some ninja in order to survive, this gesture was both reassuring and disturbing. It told him that the rumors of Ryuuhasu's policy towards children was not false, but it also told him that Ryuuhasu was powerful enough to not worry about forming attachments because he could kill anyone who challenged him.

From the show of power Ryuuhasu did earlier, the Kazekage had no doubt that if they ended up fighting each other than the genkin could very well defeat him, but not without some injury.

As the Kazekage thought this over, Usagi turned to the Kage and with a purposeful stride approached him. Stopping ten feet away from the Kage, she spoke in a voice that commanded respect, "Lord Kazekage-sama, I apologize for my behavior earlier, demo I will not be threatened for merely playing with a child. I have no true reason to fight with you or the forces of Suna.

Shikashi, I have a strong policy when children are involved and as such am furious at what I have seen. I have seen this child bigoted for having a power that he cannot control and is treated like a plague. In the eyes of a child who should never have to be exposed to such hatred, I have seen a strength found in only the wisest of beings.

This child, whom I acknowledge by the title of Sabuku no Gaara, shall hence forth receive the protection of the only living child of the ancient gods. From this day forth, I, the Ryuuhasu and Raikouyajuu, lay claim to this boy's blood and soul. With all of Suna as my witness, I swear to bring the justice of the Ningai code down upon any who challenge my claim."

As if time itself was watching this event, everything froze. Nothing moved as the genkin's oath scattered to the four winds. The Kazekage didn't know whether he should feel relieved or frustrated as the genkin stared him down.

The Ningai code was used by all of those who followed the path of an Outcast, such as thieves, mercenaries, yakuza, and others who followed such professions. It served as a source of guidelines for what was expected of someone who followed the Outcast's path. The code was also what helped Outcasts find solace when they would most likely never receive any in society and gave them a cloak of protection. As long as you followed the code, most outcasts would protect you with silence when someone came looking for you. Only a few would ever break the law of silence.

Those that did were usually found in a ditch.

Over time some of the rules had become skewered by the interference of society and change, but there were rules that could never be changed no matter how much outsiders tried.

Never involve those who had no connection to your target or your client.

Never take your blade to another outcast or a white-hand (2) unless they tried to do you wrong.

Never leave a broken contract unpunished.

And ALWAYS take vengeance when one under your oath of protection is harmed.

The Kazekage stared at the cloaked form of the Ryuuhasu. Even if he was able to have every shinobi vouch against the genkin's claim, there would always be a dozen outcasts who at least witnessed the oath. News would spread quickly and every outcast would soon know that such a high ranking member of their kind had made the oath. And should any news of Gaara being harmed by anyone reach the genkin…………

Mentally sighing he told the Ryuuhasu, "I lay witness to this oath Genkin Ryuuhasu. Never again by Suna's hand will this boy know pain." He just knew that the Council would have his head for this, but this was killing two birds with one stone. Gaara had protection and the Council could not order his death without facing the wrath of someone who had a Daimyou on their side. It was perfect.

Ryuuhasu nodded before returning to Gaara's side. As she was about to talk to him, she felt the compass give off its signal. Opening it, it pointed in the direction of River Country. Sighing, she bent to Gaara's level, "Gaara-kun, if you want me to play with you a little longer than I can. Demo, I need to leave Suna by tomorrow."

Gaara nodded sadly and took her gloved hand in his. He took her over to the sand box and began playing with her with as much energy as he could give. They would continue to play into the night and early morning.

The Kazekage returned to the Tower and the other ninjas returned to their posts. Things were going to be very different in Suna come tomorrow.

(At the gates of Suna)

Gaara looked ready to cry as Usagi stood before him with Naraku and Daichi at her sides, while Kaiko hide in the compass again. Yashamaru was standing off to the side, his gaze blank of any emotion.

Bending down and hugging Gaara one last time, she whispered in his ear, "Gaara-kun, should we ever meet again I want you to know my real name. Guard my name with your life, for I am not ready to take off my mask yet." Gaara's eyes widened as he leaned closer to hear her next words, "To others I am the Ryuuhasu, but to you I am Usagi."

Gaara's eyes were glazed as she gave him one last squeeze. As she rose, she saw the cloud covering Yashamaru was red with sad eyes. Her eyes narrowed behind her mask.

'He holds anger towards Gaara, but not enough to hate him. Rather he sees something in him that causes him to feel sadness. Demo, his anger could be a problem.'

Walking up to Yashamaru she whispered, "I don't know what you hold against him, but do not blame him for something that he most likely had no control over. He is still a boy a heart, remember that when you look at him."

Turning on her heel, she didn't see the surprised look on Yashamaru's face nor the confused look on Gaara's. The guardians shared a glance before following their contractor into the desert.

As Usagi entered the desert, she heard Gaara yell, "I will meet you again. I SWEAR IT!" She felt her lips form a smile as she raised her arm and waved at the already fading village.

'I hope we meet again too Gaara.' She thought, never once looking back as she continued on her journey.

Back at the gates, Yashamaru watched as his nephew gazed determinedly at the desert. He wondered, as he watched the boy, if he had really only seen what he wanted Gaara to be, and not who he was.

"Yashamaru."

Yashamaru blinked and gave Gaara a smile. "Hai Gaara-sama?"

"I want to be strong. Strong like Ryuuhasu. Do you think I can?"

And for the first time since Gaara was born, Yashamaru did not look at him as a reminder of his sister. What he saw was a boy willing to take on the world for the task he had set for himself.

Smiling at Gaara with a true smile, he told his nephew one word. "Hai."

(Time-skip 3 years, Konoha)

'**Usagi why would the compass point us in this direction?**' Kaiko telepathically asked.

'I don't know Kaiko, demo the compass was desperate enough that it burned my hand so I would get the point. Whatever is going to happen in this village is going to be big.' Usagi replied as she waited for her papers to be cleared.

Daichi, Naraku, and Kaiko were hiding within their items as Konoha was not as welcoming to mercenaries as some of the other villages were. Her being the Ryuuhasu, a now high A rank genkin, it made things even more hard. If her guardians had been out in their physical forms, they most likely would not have been able to enter at all.

'_We need to find out what could cause the Fates to become this troubled Usagi-dono. They can only point the direction, but every place they have led us has been for a reason._' Daichi thought from within the now wooden amulet. The block had been carved for functional purposes; after all it was easier to wear an amulet than to carry a block of wood everywhere.

The chunnin came back with her papers, "Everything is in order. Have a nice stay in Konoha genkin-san." Usagi felt a sweatdrop come on at the chunin's tone.

'He needs to get a new job if that's all he says to anyone.' She thought. She felt Naraku grumble at how most humans were boring to begin with. She couldn't help but agree with him.

Entering the village, she could see that she had come during a festival. Every direction she looked, there was decorations of all shapes and colors.

'At least I'll be able to blend in more easily with everyone having fun.' She thought.

Planning to find a good inn, she headed towards the areas with less people filling the streets. She felt a smile touch her lips as she watched children run past her, laughing without a care in the world.

She wished that she could return to that time, when her mind could be as old as what her body looked like. She had grown into a powerful warrior in her own right, with powerful ninjutsu, taijutsu, and kenjutsu that made her feared by many.

Despite the fact that most would say that she was unusually tall for a twelve year old girl, around 5'7", she was as nimble as a feline. Her hair now reached her elbows and was kept in two loose French braids, when the hood of her cloak was removed anyway. Her eyes had narrowed enough to be noticeable, but not to the point where she was squinting. She wore jewelry now, though it was hidden by her cloak. The amulet was shaped like what Daichi had called a "Celtic cross", something that had tugged at her memory before it disappeared. She had a ring with the kanji for 'protector' carved into the band surrouded by two small blue cats-eye stones. She had an earring that had an olivine-colored stone the size and length of a small needle; she had taken it as payment for the contract one of her more 'shady' clients, after he tried to break their contract of course. Her cloak had gone through a few minor changes to give her less trouble when runnig and was looser. On the back of her hands were container seals that allowed her to summon whatever item she needed on the go.

Her strength however, was what many had come to fear. She had taken a liking to creating her own hijutsu, sparing no segment of the war arts in her quest to become strong enough to uphold her rank as the only living child of the ancient Kamis.

Her taijutsu was B-rank, using a style that allowed her to use her opponent's physical strength against them in rebounds. It was more of a defensive style because it required her opponent to attack first, but when they did attack she would position her body to use her opponents force to generate an attack that was twice, even three-times, the strength of the original attack. It had no special moves or a name like most taijutsu styles because she was more of a kenjutsu user than hand-to-hand combat and would use it when she wasn't using her nagamaki.

Her kenjutsu was rumored to have surpassed those of the Seven Swordsmen, though she made it a habit not to take on opponents that she knew she could not defeat without greatly injuring herself; and going against a Swordsman was one of the top 'Do Not Fight' list.

She had named the style Sabaki no Keibatsu, Judgment of the Ancient Laws, in honor of the Kamis. The basic idea was to attack the target spots on the body using her extreme levels of speed. The main targets of the style depended on which level of the style she used.

There were three levels: Earth, Heaven, and Hell. The Earth level consisted of moves that targeted the ligaments and specific pressure points but it was not to have the drawing of her weapon. That way it kept unnecessary death at a low. However it also required her to hold her weapon in at the guard to keep the sheath attached, reducing her reach and insuring that her hand's mobility would be limited. Because of this she used the Earth level on opponents that were on par with common thugs or genins.

The Heaven level was when she drew her weapon and it attacked the same targets as the Earth along with targeting organs, arteries, and nerve path-ways; however in this level she used the jutsu she had created to work with her weapon. This level was meant for harder opponents and those she had to take out.

The last level, the Hell level, was to be used in life-or-death situations only. In this level she held nothing back, attacking the death insuring points was the top priority. Should she come to it, she was to begin releasing the chakra gates. There were two kinjutsu reserved for this level, one was meant to be used before the chakra gates and the other was a kamikaze attack meant to be used in sync with the chakra gates.

'I pray I never come across an opponent that requires the Hell level.' Usagi thought with a shudder. She had used only the first gate when she created the Hell level, but that was more than enough for her to label it as S-rank.

Her ninjutsu, not including those involving her nagamaki, was almost unbelievable. She had spent days and nights training her ass off for long periods to master as many of the ninjutsu she had learned. She could say with complete confidence that she had mastered every ration jutsu B-rank and down along with the basics and a variety of the other elemental jutsus. She had even created a handful of B, A, and one S-rank jutsu of her own.

Her genjutsu would never reach past C-rank, her chakra was both too potent and massive to do any high ranking genjutsu. And she had no intention of putting her mind through the intensive training that would take years of discipline and creativity to allow her to use high ranking genjutsu. Not to say that she didn't try to learn the higher ones at first, but after trying to do _Fuka Oboe Kinan no Jutsu_ only to have it rebound to her…………it was not pretty.

'Ya know ahou, partially speaking it was not completely your fault. Even I didn't know that the mirror would react like **that.**' Naraku stated.

Usagi's eyes clouded over as the memory of the mirror came back to her. Twice now it had proven to be both an asset and a tool of unimaginable destruction. First with the Kusakage then with the genjutsu; not to mention what her last encounter with the mirror's power reveled…..

Suddenly a scream of pure agony and fear reached her ears. She immediately rushed to the location of the scream, one of the back roads.

What she saw made her see red.

A mob surrounded a quivering bundle, the bundle covered in blood and torn cloths. A child, a young child, was being attacked by a mob of men and woman; and not a single one looked revolted with what they were doing. She could feel her guardians stir as her rage reached them through their connection. The child moved a little, thus allowing their eyes to meet. What his eyes told her made her heart feel like it was being torn in two.

Loneliness, sadness, and acceptance. Her skin went cold.

He expected her to simply watch. Watch as he was beaten to a pulp by an angry mob.

Something within her snapped and she felt her guardians take on their humanoid forms. Dropping the genjutsu on her mask, she stared at the people who would soon be in Hell.

But just to be sure…

"Tell me your reason for attacking a child." She asked the mob, her voice low but so cold that every person there turned to stare at her.

One of the men next to the child stepped forward, "We're getting rid of the demon that has been nothing but a torment to us! Eight years this demon has been allowed to live and rub it in our faces that he took our loved ones! No more, for now we will get rid of him!"

'Him, huh.' She absently thought while verbally replying, "Bad answer."

She drew her nagamaki and charged, her guardians blocking any chance of the mob escaping.

'Let the bloodbath begin.'

(With the Sandaime)

In all of his long and stressed life, the Sandaime Hokage had never been more worried and rushed than he was now. He had received news that Naruto had been seen chased by a particularly large mob and that some civilians had heard screams. What disturbed him was that the screams originally came from one source but had become many in less than two minutes, but not a single person had sensed any of _its_ chakra.

He felt the ANBU fall into formation as they dashed to the location of the disturbance. They could take no chances when situations like this happened.

Within minutes, he and the ANBU arrived at the scene. The Sandaime had expected many things when he had heard of the situation but this…..

There was blood everywhere. With bodies and body parts of the villagers strewn throughout the back-road with a blood moon shining overhead, it reminded him of a painting of Hell made real.

"You are the Hokage ne?"

Every ninja went on alert as a genderless voice rose from the shadows. The moon suddenly peaked from behind the clouds, revealing the forms of four people. Three of them were visible enough to see that they were not completely human, and with them casually sitting in this scene of carnage made them seem even more inhumane. However, the fourth figure was-

The Hokage's eyes widened, "I am, and you are the genkin Ryuuhasu correct?"

The fourth figure nodded, still standing with his back to them. "I knew that Konoha was better at hiding its darker side than the other villages; demo what I witnessed these villagers doing, **and** **enjoying**, has made my impression of Konoha plummet." The Ryuuhasu turned to face the growing number of ninjas.

In one arm was a peacefully sleeping Naruto, the other was holding what the Sandaime recognized as a nagamaki. Blood covered the entire front portion of the genkin's body as well as Naruto.

Sandaime felt relief at the obvious signs of who had attacked the villagers. If it had been Naruto then the Council may-no would have used it to try and get rid of him for good. The genkin continued with his scold, "I come to this village with only good intentions. Yet what this village has done is so disgusting to me that I had no quarrel spilling blood."

Ryuuhasu walked slowly towards the Kage, making sure to not cause the boy sleeping in her arms to wake up. The other three followed the genkin, not even caring about what they stepped on or what they were kicking away from them. Their eyes were hard and cold, leaving no room for sympathy or mercy.

Ryuuhasu stopped before the Kage, her mask no longer visible and her bloodlust sated. "Does this happen to the boy frequently?" It was both a demand and a question.

The Sandaime knew that somehow he was being tested, for what he did not know, but he felt that telling the truth was the best course for everyone here. So he nodded. The genkin stared at him, or at least it felt like it. The Kage stood his ground, and for a few minutes it seemed like both of them had become statues.

The Ryuuhasu then sighed, "Then I will take action once more. You genuinely care about this boy so I will not fight with you too much, but this village has my eye on it now." She paused, "Hokage-sama, I wish to make a contract with you. Not with your Council, but with you as the Kage."

The Hokage raised an eyebrow, "Considering that you have just committed a massacre in my village, why would I make a contract with you?"

The masked genkin was positively smirking, "Because my lord, all I have to do is activate one of my personal jutsus and every attack against this boy that I witnessed this village do will be sent straight to the Daimyou of both Iwa _**and**_ Konoha. Both of them owe me at least one favor for my services to them. I have no doubt that if something like this got out to such powerful people, it would become a massive scandal."

The Hokage felt a chill go down his spine. The genkin's declaration, if true, literally put the fate of the village in his hands.

The Daimyou served as the major source of income for any hidden village, 70 percent of the economy depended on the income the Daimyou sent to the village. Konoha was a consumer and somewhat of a capitalist state, the village did not have a product that it could use if they needed to make money besides its ninja.

If the Daimyou stopped sending his services and income to the village, it would mean the end of Konoha. Sandaime's shoulders dropped.

Usagi smirked, she knew she had won before the Kage even spoke.

(End)

Chapter 6 is up!

(1) a "white hand" is basically someone who has not been convicted of a crime or are a part of the "lighter" side of society. (ex. store owner, farmer, etc.)

The "darker" side of society consists of thieves, yakuza, drug lords, mercenaries, bounty hunters, murders, rapists, and many other such criminals. Such labels would make any respectable civilian consider them to be outsiders or "Outcasts".

1/16/09

I hope you liked whatever revisions I did, I'm trying to make it better while staying true to my original design. Ta-ta!


	7. Chapter 7

Umiki: I COMPLETELY APOLOGISE FOR THE WAIT!! Between finals and my job, I have barely been able to complete the chapter. I hope you like this chapter.

"Speech" human and Naraku

"_Speech"_ Daichi

"**Speech**" Kaiko

'Speech' thinking

1/16/09

you know the drill!

Release of the Caged Soul

Chapter 7

Umiki

The Hokage of Konohagakure didn't know whether to feel joy or agast.

Sitting before him was a mercenary feared by many in the underworld for his, or rather her _to his surprise_, abilities; yet was possibly a god-send for the Sandaime. She had just presented him with a contract that would both quench his fears for Naruto's safety and cause an outcry by the Council. Looking at the said contract, he reread it just to be sure he was not dreaming.

"_Tenth day of the tenth month of the seventh year of the reign of the Hi no Kuni Daimyou Urumaru._

_The child known as Uzumaki Naruto of the Village Hidden in the Leaves shall be given to the guardianship of the mercenary Ryuuhasu. In turn the Ryuuhasu shall take up the Uzumaki name and live as both a civilian and a citizen in the Leaf village. The terms of this agreement are:_

_The Hokage may offer missions to the Ryuuhasu but the right to accept or deny taking the mission will be given to the Ryuuhasu. In turn the Ryuuhasu will also take on a civilian life when not on missions. _

_The Ryuuhasu shall be named the current head of the Uzumaki clan until Uzumaki Naruto is old enough to accept the title. This will in turn mean that the Uzumaki will have the full rights of any of the ninja clans within Konoha. _

_Should the members of the Uzumaki clan be attacked in any form within the borders of Konohagakure without __**proven**__ cause, than the Uzumaki clan shall have the right to demand retribution of those who wronged them. If the cause is true and presented with proof of fault, than the normal court system shall be taken to resolve the dispute. _

_What cannot be accepted as proof against the clan is word alone. It has been common in the past for the clan name to be wronged by false accusations that have been accepted as truth without question. This will not be accepted and shall be met with retribution if unlawful actions are met. _

_In the event that the Uzumaki clan head, Uzumaki Usagi or the Ryuuhasu, should die before Uzumaki Naruto becomes of age to take the position of clan head or pass on the title of heir to another should Uzumaki Naruto relinquish the title; then the clan shall be placed in the protection of the Hi no Kuni Daimyou until an heir has been chosen._

_If the clan desires it, they shall leave Konohagakure and neither the Council nor the Hokage will have the right to deny them leave._

_With these terms the Ryuuhasu shall become Uzumaki Usagi, lawful guardian of Uzumaki Naruto and the reigning head of the Uzumaki clan, and a villager of Konohagakure._

The Hokage looked back to the girl, who had denied to remove her mask but had lowered her hood as a sign of good will. Those she called guardians were in a protective formation around the girl and the still sleeping boy.

The Hokage knew this was practically too good to be true, he could already see the faces of the Council members should he sign this contract. There were no obvious loopholes and this would give Naruto protection and a family. And from the looks of things, Naruto didn't want to let the mercenary go. He was holding onto her so tightly that she had turned blue earlier, or at least her neck had.

He nearly lost it at the thought of Naruto one day being an equal rank with the stotic Hyuuga Hiashi. But there was one thing that threatened this plan, Kyuubi.

As if reading his thoughts Usagi said, "If you're worried about the second power source within Naruto, be assured that I already know that it stems from a demonic origin."

Sandaime tensed like a strung cord. Usagi sighed, "When one of your guardians happens to be a former youkai from Hell, you tend to be able to tell the difference between a youkais' aura and a ningens."

"Aura?" Sandaime asked his body relaxing as the explanation was filed away for further references.

"Clan secret Hokage-sama. Although I may not be a part of a clan yet, it is still a secret to my family." Usagi replied gently.

The Kage was now mentally jumping for joy and relief as he looked at the girl sitting before him. In a single day he had met someone who both accepted Naruto even with the knowledge of his tenant and wanted to become a part of his life. He knew that this would probably cause him to have to do at least two stacks of paperwork from the complaints, but the ends justified the means.

The Sandaime smiled kindly to the mercenary, his mind made up. "I agree to these terms Uzumaki Usagi."

"Then let us sign the contract." Usagi replied.

After both signed the contract with their blood, Usagi asked the Kage, "May I inquire as to where Naruto and I shall live?"

"Is there any specific environment that you wished to be surrounded by? Konoha has plenty of space." Sandaime asked.

"Someplace where I will be able to train him without someone walking in to the session and where I can teach him how to survive in the wilderness. Somewhere close to a training area with dangerous situations." Usagi listed off.

Sandaime smiled at her, "I believe that there is just the place. It's next to training area 44, better known as the Forest of Death."

(Later that day)

"You sure that was what the Sisters wanted you to do ahou?"

Usagi looked up from her task of cooking tonight's dinner and blinked at the relaxed Naraku.

Naraku was laying on his back, eyes closed and hands behind his head. The other two were watching over her now little brother as he continued to sleep, making sure he was healing properly and getting no negative influence from the Kyuubi.

Usagi hummed, "Probably not niisan. Demo, they know that their hands are tied whenever I am involved. I am the wild card of this dimension, trying to control my life completely will only back-fire on them."

"They had big plans for that boy ahou. Your powers are strong enough to see that." Naraku stated.

"Be as it may, his cloud was filled with nothing but pain and loneliness and was so strong that it was close to becoming a physical entity. Not even you, oh-mighty-heartless-youkai, could have ignored that." She paused before narrowing her eyes in boredom, "Didn't you also mention that you knew the demon?"

Naraku comically tensed, his eye twitching.

Usagi sighed and shock her head before returning to her previous task, cooking ramen for dinner. She heard Naraku grumble, "I still can't believe that you agreed to buy this place."

She felt satisfaction when she heard him yelp as the pot hit dead on.

The Sandaime had shown her the house, which was originally a small two story inn modeled in a traditional form. It had been abandoned after the Kyuubi attack eight years ago since the owners had died. The absence of maintenance had made a good portion of the building in need of repair.

Strangely enough, the Kyuubi had bypassed this area completely even though the inn had been directly in its path.

"RAMEN?!" an excited voice was heard from upstairs. The sound of rapid thumps made it clear the source was coming in fast.

'Probably Naruto. Hokage-sama mentioned that ramen was his favorite food.' Usagi absently thought as she put the finishing touches on the steaming hot noodles.

Naraku sprang away from the path of the energetic fox boy as he dashed to the table containing his revered gift from the gods.

Usagi sweat dropped, 'For some reason I have the feeling I was once no different.'

Kaiko and Daichi entered the room and sat down at the table, while Naraku ignored them for the most part; he couldn't stomach anything that wasn't made of meat no matter how small the amount was. He was a meat-eater through and through, and not even his contract with Usagi could change that.

Usagi sat down at the table, and slapped Naruto's hand before he could take a bite. He looked at her with fear and hesitation, now worried that he may be in trouble. Usagi noticed the look.

"It is impolite to eat before giving thanks to the Kami's for providing us with the food." She explained. Naruto looked confused.

"Take this ramen for example. The noodles are made from rice, which grows thanks to the effort of the Kitsune deity Inari, who is said to be both a god and a goddess of fertility. Without the blessings of Inari, rice would not grow and in turn noodles could not exist. That is just one god that helped create everything ningens take for granted." She explained.

Naruto stared wide eyed at the ramen sitting before him. "I never thought about it like that before, dattebayo." He said.

Usagi nodded, "Most don't anymore. Giving thanks is but a small offering for what we have now, demo in this day and age, when most no longer pray to the ancient gods, giving thanks helps them notice us from within Nirvana. Even if only for a moment."

Naruto was now looking at the food with awe. Usagi smiled, "Let us give thanks now."

Placing her hands in her lap, she closed her eyes and began the prayer, "We thank you, Kami's of days long since passed, for granting us another meal to give us strength. May you accept our prayers and gratefulness as we dine on that which has been given to us in good will."

Usagi opened her eyes and smiled, "Let's dig in!" There were no objections to that statement.

Throughout the meal Usagi had noticed Naruto glancing at her inquisitively and understood that he was still nervous about earlier. She may have saved him, but she wouldn't put it past the villagers to have tricked him with similar actions.

Deciding to put his anxieties at ease, she inquired, "You are wondering why you are here, ne?"

Naruto nodded slowly.

"The reason is because this will be your new home." She continued.

Naruto looked at her with both joy and hesitation. "Honto ni?"

Usagi nodded, "Honto ni. The Hokage agreed to give us this old inn and redecorate it as we saw fit. It will be our clan house."

"Us?" Naruto asked confusedly.

"After what I saw the villagers put you through, no way in Hell am I leaving your safety in the care of the Hokage alone. You are a strong boy Uzumaki Naruto, demo all who are strong need someone to keep them steady in the end." She explained.

Naruto stared at her, his expression telling her that he was not getting it.

'Was I ever that naïve?' she thought with amusement.

'_**Hai you were.**_' All of her guardians monotonously replied.

'No respect.' She thought with a sweatdrop before continuing.

"What I mean Naruto-kun is that starting today I will be your guardian, your caretaker. If it makes you feel more comfortable, you can call me neechan."

Naruto was so shocked at her answer that he dropped his noodle-filled chopsticks, his jaw hanging as he stared at her. He truthfully looked like he had been handed the Forbidden Scroll and told that he had to master all the jutsu in one night.

His reaction made Usagi frown, her experience with human interactions kicking in.

The Hokage had mentioned that he didn't have many friends and no family, but she knew that it took something close to a figurative "punch in the head" for an eight year old boy to react to something like this; the fact that he has been an orphan since birth taken into account.

The gears in her head turned as she did the equations.

Demonic power source+ eight year time-frame+ whisker marks+ obvious hatred -Kyuubi no Kitsune.

Second equation: Villagers+ public abuse+ no positive interactions+ reaction - **nearly complete social isolation**.

She could feel her guardians slowly shift away from her as she snapped her chopsticks in two, mentally screaming and ranting curses at the villagers who intentionally isolated an innocent boy for something he had no control over. She had sworn to the Hokage that she would not mention the S-class law, but that didn't mean that she would stand by and do nothing.

Her lips formed a grin that was so evil that even Jashin would turn green with envy. She was already planning to use a few of her more crueler traps as security measures for any unwelcomed to their new home.

"A-ano…." A terrified voice stuttered.

She set aside the thought of glass-shard kunais for later and returned her attention to the boy.

"Hai?"

"Ano…eto….what was your name again?"

She felt like slapping her still masked face, "Sa, watashi wa Uzumaki Usagi. I also go by the titles Ryuuhasu and Raikouyajuu as I was an A-rank mercenary. And if you're wondering why I have two titles it's because I am known to show my mask when I intend to kill. When my mask is out of sight, everyone calls me Ryuuhasu for the pattern on the back of my cloak."

Naruto blinked as he took a closer look at her mask. It did look a little intimidating without her cloak, and it probably looked even more scary when she was wearing the cloak.

Now that he thought about it, he wondered why she never took it off to begin with.

Usagi continued, "Now before you ask, these two" indicating the two sitting at the table, "are my spirit guardians. The woman is the sea-maiden Kaiko and the horned male is Daichi of the earth. The wet blanket over there is Naraku, a member of the Hell-wolf tribe."

Naruto blinked as the introduction went through his head. From the way Usagi had introduced them, he almost thought that they were youkai.

"And yes, all of them are not ningens." She added for good measure.

'Ehhhhh?!' Naruto yelled as he kept looking back and forth between the three.

The one lying on the floor, Naraku, snorted. "A word of warning gaki, if you want to live to see thirty than don't do anything that will wake up her bitch instincts. Those who do usually end up six-feet under."

Naruto watched in awe as a large black pot suddenly appeared out of nowhere and slammed into Naraku's head.

"What'd you say _Fluffy_-kun? I think I just heard you say the b-word in front of an eight year old boy. Was I wrong?" A seething Usagi growled. Naraku shook his head violently at his contractor, hoping she would let this slide.

Kami seemed to be with him when Naruto said, "It's alright Usa-neechan. I've hear words like that all the time!" He had an easy-going grin as he said that.

Usagi felt her face twitching as her body trembled with rage. She could also feel all her guardians leaving the room; with Kaiko grabbing Naruto, ramen and all. She suddenly saw red as she screamed from the top of her lungs.

(In Suna)

"Maa Gaara-sama, you've been growing at a fast pace these days. You need to rest for a few days or else you-"

"_**NNNNNNAAAAAAANNNNNNIIIIIIII!?" **_

"Yashimaru what was that?"

"I have no idea Gaara-sama."

(Back in Konoha, at the Hokage Tower)

Sarutobi could feel himself trembling as the rage-filled voice continued to reverberate the office. The voice was obviously female and had been so enraged that he had to wonder how far the scream had gone.

'Did Tsunade-hime make a surprise visit?' he thought with a sweatdrop.

Glancing at the ANBU hiding in the shadows, he noticed his hand was missing the infamous little orange book and that Inu was stiff as a board. His sweatdrop grew even larger.

(Back at the Uzumaki house)

Usagi was wheezing as she slowly calmed down from her earlier outburst. The spirit trio and Naruto were peeking from behind the doors, checking to make sure that it was safe to enter.

"See what I mean gaki?" Naraku whispered to the fox-boy. Naruto nodded in fear as his sister stomped outside to calm down.

"Onee-chan is scary when mad." he replied.

"**She merely is acting out on her instincts young one. The Goddess of Protection, Kishimojin, was one of the Kami's that blessed your sister years ago. Shikashi, blessings can become a double-edged sword. One day she will explain it to you, demo at the present time it is best to keep your distance**_."_ Kaiko told him.

Naruto heartedly agreed with the dark-skinned woman as he heard something large being ripped out of the ground outside.

(A week later)

The sun shined brightly into the now sparkly-clean inn. It had taken a long, torturous week to clean and repair the inn, but it had been worth it in the end. They now had clean running water and the foundations had been fixed or reinforced to suitable living conditions. At the moment the rooms were still plain of any major decoration but they were comfortable enough to live in.

Within one of the second-story rooms was the sleeping figure of Konoha's martyr. The sunlight was trying to wake up the stubborn boy, but to no avail. It was near impossible to wake up the boy ever since he moved into the inn, almost nothing could wake him up.

Almost nothing….

"BREAKFAST!!" a loud voice pierced the quiet calm of the morning.

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he leapt from his futon. He dashed out of his room and ran down the stairs, then walked quickly to the dining room. Opening the door, he smiled as the sight of his sister placing breakfast on the table greeted him. The spirit trio were sitting at their respectable places at the table, waiting for him to also take his seat.

It had been explained to him that he, to his surprise, was the next head of the Uzumaki clan. As such, he was to sit at the corner on Usagi's right. Usagi was sitting at the right side of the table, the left side empty to symbolize that Usagi had no partner and no intended. The seat on the left corner was empty because Usagi had no children. The seats after Naruto's row had Kaiko, Daichi, and Naraku positioned to symbolize that they were official members of the Uzumaki clan.

As customary, the family waited for all members to take their seats before saying the prayers. Only then would they be allowed to eat.

Taking his seat, Usagi smiled at him and said, "Would you like to do today's prayers Naruto-kun?"

He nodded eagerly and relaxed before putting his hands in the same position that Usagi did during prayer. He closed his eyes and said, "We thank you, Kami's of days long since passed, for granting us another meal to give us strength. May you accept our prayers and gratefulness as we dine on that which has been given to us in good will."

"In good will." Usagi repeated while the others remained silent. Usagi had explained to him that only the ningen members of the clan were required to pray, it was up to the guardians on whether or not to join in.

After prayer was over, the family ate slowly as they conversed on what the agenda for today was.

"Kaiko-san and Daichi-kun are listing off everything we will need to prepare the house for suitable living. They will be in henge so they won't attract attention. Naraku will be guarding you for the time being while I will be setting up the finishing touches of the security system. Do not go outside the house's boundaries unless I say it is alright." Usagi told Naruto sternly.

Naruto pouted but did not complain. He had learned quickly that arguing with his sister about his safety was like talking to an Uchiha.

Later that day, Naruto was playing in the garden when he saw Kaiko and Daichi return from the village. They looked, to him anyway, annoyed as hell. Kaiko's eye was twitching and Daichi's face was set in a frown.

Naruto gulped as the air became cold as ice. The only time he had ever seen them like this was the night Usagi and the guardians had come to Konoha, and even then the guardians had not had **visible** signs of anger.

Naraku felt it too because he had notably moved ten feet away from the incoming missile.

"A-ano Kaiko-neesan, Daichi-aniki….daijobu?" Naruto hesitantly asked.

Kaiko walked by him without replying. Daichi, deciding the boy needed some reassurance, answered.

"_It seems that some of the villagers found out where you were living, and when we were returning home they tried to talk us into giving you to them._"

Naruto paled and Naraku, who had returned to Naruto's side now that the enraged sea-maiden had cleared from the area, audibly growled as he clutched his trident.

"I would not worry about that now minna." a familiar voice spoke behind them. Turning, Naruto saw Usagi leaning on the wall next to the door. "I just finished the security measures around the plot of land the Sandaime gave us." she finished.

Naraku raised an eyebrow, "Just how much did you bobby-trap?"

Usagi shrugged, "The entire perimeter of the 25 square miles Hokage-san gave us. When you reach the 16 square mile boundary a new and more complex set of traps are laid out. This process continues all the way to the house. Then there are the traps within the house itself."

They stared at her like she had just asked Jiraiya if she could model for him.

"I have no intention of anyone unwelcomed entering my house. I may have recently semi-retired, demo there are still some people out there who hold grudges against me." She told them uncaringly.

They nodded, deciding to leave it at that.

Daichi suddenly blinked quickly, "_That reminds me Usagi-dono, I retrieved the materials you asked for me to pick up earlier._"

Taking a scroll out, Daichi handed it to Usagi before bowing his head slightly to Naruto and Naraku and heading inside the house.

Usagi turned to Naruto, "Oi Naruto-kun, come here."

Naruto approached her, confusion clear on his face. Kneeling before him she asked, "Naruto-kun, you told me once that you wanted to be a shinobi, ne?"

Naruto nodded excitedly, "Dattebayo!! I'll become Konoha's greatest Hokage!"

Naraku turned his head, so that Naruto would not see his sneer. He could not believe that the kid would seriously want to be the leader of the village that despised his very existence.

Usagi smiled behind her mask, ignoring Naraku's obvious distaste for the village. "Well, I asked Daichi to get me a starter kit for you. It has 20 blunt wooden kunais and shuriken, and a little something extra."

Usagi quickly braced herself when Naruto jumped onto her, squeezing her like she had handed him an all-you-can-eat coupon for Ichiraku's. She laughed as he kept repeating 'thank you' to her over and over. Naraku's lips twitched as he tried to not smile at the scene; he was a youkai after all and youkai's did not smile at sunshine-happy moments.

Once Naruto had calmed down, Usagi opened the scroll to show him the kunais, shuriken, and a piece of paper.

"The items are weighted so that they are exactly the same as steel kunai and shuriken to insure that you can easily switch from wood to metal when the time comes. I'll teach you how to use them tomorrow."

Naruto nodded than lifted the paper up to Usagi's face, "Nee-chan, what is this?"

Usagi chuckled, "That is a special paper meant to test one's chakra affinity."

"Chakra affinity?"

"Hai. Every person in the world has an element that corresponds to their chakra, making it easier to learn jutsus of that particular element." She explained. Naruto only looked at her confusedly.

Seeing that her younger brother was still not getting it, she decided to simplify it even more. "What I mean is that every person has an element that is specific to them. I for instance am a raiton based chakra while the Uchiha clan is notoriously katon based."

Naruto's eyes widened a little as he nodded his head in understanding. He then asked, "What is my affinity?"

"Until you learn to draw your chakra out, even I won't know." Usagi replied. Naruto looked down-set. Usagi sighed, "I'll teach you how soon, but not now. Maybe after you start the Academy and learn more about chakra. But until then we'll stick with the physical stuff."

Before Naruto could ask his sister to start training him on the spot the trees surrounding them rustled strongly. Kaiko then marched up to the group, grabbed the back of Naruto's shirt, and dragged him inside the house; completely ignoring his outraged squawk. Daichi glanced at Usagi for an instant at the doorframe before closing the door and locking it.

Usagi walked over to a nearby tree and whispered, "Who has come and how many?"

The leaves rustled as she listened to the tree's soothing voice, "_Ten men, all coming with ill intent. Three of them are the bearers of the fan. They have not reached the gate, and are ignoring the warning you placed. They will be here soon."_

"Arigato." Usagi whispered. Turning to Naraku she said, "If they take one step onto our land, they are officially trespassers and can be dealt with as we see fit. Deal with them as you like, but leave the three with the Uchiha symbol to me."

Naraku smirked, his teeth becoming fangs and his eyes slits.

(At the gate)

Usagi stood on a tree branch directly behind the gate, her training as a genkin making her virtually invisible to any untrained eyes. Naraku was waiting in dog form under a bush, licking his chops with eagerness. It had been a long time since he had the okay to eat his proper source of nutrition.

The air became still as the forms of ten people came into view. Most of them swayed a little with each step, no doubt drunk. Naraku nearly snorted, the taste of alcohol dulled the vigor of a mouthful of flesh and blood. Eating them would be both thrilling yet disappointing.

Usagi watched with disgust and anger as the men laughed at some joke, not even caring about the sign that boldly stated 'No Trespassing! Intruders Will Be Dealt with Violence!' on the arch signifying the entrance to the Uzumaki grounds.

'Just 10.7 ft left Usagi, not a cm sooner.' she told herself. She hated spilling unnecessary blood, but if defending her precious one's meant ending lives than so be it.

For one instant, Usagi felt a familiar pain in her right eye before it dissipated. She mentally scowled, this was not the time for it to act up again.

'Ahou, they just crossed the boundary.' Naraku told her. Usagi sent a mental confirmation to her guardian and drew her beloved weapon. It was time to show that she truly meant business to the people of this village.

Jumping swiftly off the branch, she dashed at the men who had the Uchiha crest adorning their clothes. She cut off the first one's head without missing a beat.

The other two had drawn out kunai by the time the first one's head fell from his shoulders, the second one blocking a strike to his neck while the third tried to stab her in the back.

Usagi flowed around the second Uchiha faster than he could keep up with and shoved him into the descending kunai's path. The Uchiha gave out a choked gasp as the kunai stabbed him through the heart and the third Uchiha froze in shock. He did not have a second to regret his body's action when he felt something pass through his face swiftly before his vision became skewed and then dark.

Usagi flicked her nagamaki clean of the blood and glanced behind her to see Naraku tearing out the last man's throat. She didn't even flinch as the man gurgled and drowned in his own blood.

"These men were incredibly weak ahou. It's insulting that they would come so unprepared." Naraku told her as he stood over his kills.

Usagi shrugged, "They were expecting to only find some weak protector and a child at the most. Naruto's previous caretakers were not as protective as I am."

Naraku growled in disgust then dragged his kills over into a pile and began to eat to his heart's content. Usagi sighed and shock her head before casting a Katon jutsu into the sky. A few minutes later, two ANBU appeared outside of the clan grounds.

They took in the bloody scene before them with hidden shock.

"What is the meaning of this?" Taka demanded.

Usagi replied, "I believe that the sign I put up speaks for my actions. Also, by Clan Rights Laws I have the right to do with intruders as I wish. That also means that these three," motioning to the corpses at her feet "are now my property."

The ANBU stared at her with cold intensity before Nezumi spoke, "I will have to report this to the Hokage. Do not leave the vicinity." Usagi nodded to the ANBU.

He than shushined to the Tower, leaving Taka to watch over Usagi and the still eating Naraku. Usagi walked over to Naraku and sat down on a boulder next to his feeding grounds, before turning her head in Taka's direction.

"You may want to contact the Uchiha clan as well. They best be ready to negotiate for my giving up these corpses, because everything I did tonight is perfectly legal by your village's law."

The ANBU did not reply to her words, but she knew that he had heard her and that was all that mattered.

Sighing to herself, she turned her head to Naraku. "What do you think I should make for dinner tomorrow?"

Naraku looked up from his meal, blood smeared all over his muzzle. "Gyouza. If I have to eat anything that even smells like ramen **again**, I'll go insane." Usagi laughed at Naraku's horrified expression after he said 'again'. Naruto had slipped Naraku some **vegetable** ramen into his stew the other day, and Naraku ended up hacking like he had a hairball stuck in his throat.

It had taken Daichi and Kaiko restraining him and Usagi promising to cook him whatever he wanted for the next few days to get him to stop chasing and ultimately kill Naruto.

"He had no idea that you a strict carnivore Naraku, he just wanted you to try something new."

"Meat would have been alright, but _vegetables_?!" Naraku whined/growled in repulsion.

"Oh quit whining you big baby. You get to choose dinner for two more days thanks to him." Usagi teased.

As the two continued to converse, the ANBU watched all of this with disgust and a dash of admiration. It took nerve to be able to joke around while the person, or animal in the case, you were joking with was ripping out a man's heart and eating it in a very gore like fashion.

The only reason he had been able to stand the sight was because of his intensive training in controlling his body's reactions.

Taka perked up when he felt the incoming chakras of many people. He immediately recognized the chakra of the Hokage and of a few of the clan heads, and two ANBU in particular.

"The Hokage will arrive shortly." He told the genkin. Usagi nodded as she stood up and dusted of her cloak.

At the sounds of feet landing on the ground, Usagi looked over to see the Hokage, three men who were obviously the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, and an Itachi and Inu ANBU.

'Wait a minute, that aura….' Usagi coldly stared at the Inu ANBU, fury and hostility radiating from her still form. Everyone felt her growing anger and were wondering what on Earth was going on.

"_You….._" Usagi growled. The Inu ANBU watched her with apprehension, preparing himself for an attack. What he got though was not what he nor anyone had expected.

"YOU STUPID NINJA, YOU STILL OWE ME 4 RYU!!"

Everyone stared at her like she had just grown a second head.

"_Sen Tai, bookstore, a certain __**orange**__ book you swapped leaving me to pay for it._" Usagi fumed. Naraku was now staring at the accused ANBU with pity, he remembered how utterly _pissed_ his mistress had been when some perverted idiot had decided to skip on her and make her pay for **his** perverted book.

She had torn up three square miles of forest before calming down.

Inu hummed for a moment before making a sound of surprise, "Ahh, you're the genkin I met a few years back. Yeah thanks by the way, that version of Icha Icha was the platinum edition of Icha Icha Horrors; one of only 250 copies."

The Hokage's finger twitched unnoticeably while Usagi's face became, unseen to the rest, red with rage.

"I don't beep care about your beep book!! Just pay me back my 4 beep ryo!" she shouted.

Inu simply took out a familiar book and giggled as he read it.

Naraku's jaw dropped in astonishment at the audacity the now classified suicidal baka, in his mind, had just done in front of his enraged master. Usagi growled like a tigress as she slowly drew her nagamaki, her mask clearly visible.

'I better stop this before I end up with eleven bodies to deal with.' Sarutobi reasoned to himself. The next instant he added, 'The next time I see you Minato, I'm going to throttle you for leaving me to deal with all of this crap.'

He was getting too old for this.

(End)

There you go, chapter 7!

Again I apologize for the wait. I've had to balance my time doing my fics and my work.

Now before you leave, I need to know who you want for secondary pairings. We already have Usagi/Gaara but if there is a particular paring you want to see than send it my way.

And I meant what I said when I will consider any pairing asked of me. I mean come on, I'm a fan of SasuNaru.

And to my loyal fans, here's a little spoiler about the next chapter.

_Spoiler/ "So Uchiha-sama, what will it be. You can have your clan lose face entirely, or you can give me your son."_

_End spoiler_

Ja!


	8. Chapter 8

Hello everyone! Thank you for waiting for so long for my next update. I have had to deal with so many things that just working on my fics has been nothing short of a chore.

But know that I have been not only completing this chapter but have also fixed and changed a few things in previous chapters.

Understand that I have no Beta and am making the personalities of the characters in this fic suite my beliefs so please do not think to badly of my work. TTTT

1/16/09

The last revisions on this chapter, yay!

Chapter 8

Umiki

"By Konoha's laws and the contract I made with you, what I did is completely legal."

The Hokage, Trio, and Usagi were currently sitting in the Hokage's Office. Naraku had agreed to stay behind and make sure that her new 'property' was not stolen. The ANBU had gone off to do other duties.

After Usagi had nearly strangled the ANBU squad leader Inu of course.

The Sandaime nodded in agreement, "This is true, as you are the official clan-head and they intruded onto your lands without permission. The warning you posted also helps your case because they knew what would happen if they ignored it. However, it does not change that you killed three members of the Uchiha clan."

Usagi sighed, "I have watched the social boundaries in Konoha ever since I came to this village and from what I have seen and heard of the Uchiha clan, I can honestly say that they are a proud family. Though most of the family is neutral on the subject of Naruto due to the trust that they had for your former Kage, they will not let the fact that their members died by not only my hand but on Uzumaki property slide."

Shikaku mumbled out 'troublesome' before throwing in his two cents, "It's the Uchiha Council that will be of the most concern. They will try to take their usual 'Uchiha' approach to this mess and place blame on you. We'll be lucky if Fugaku actually finds a way to fix this."

Usagi was visibly confused by the last comment, so Sandaime decided to clarify what Shikaku meant, "By the clan's standards Uchiha Fugaku took an unusual approach in politics when he choose to try and work in negotiating with all parties instead of demanding for superiority like previous heads, therefore he is the one that you should try to deal with and not the Council."

Usagi understood, and at this very moment was coming up with a plan that only an Uzumaki would dare try. Even if it worked, Usagi knew that the result could become a double-edged sword. The circumstances however left her with few options, especially with what her eye had shown her.

She could only hope that she would not come to regret what she was going to do.

"Hokage-sama, arrange a meeting with Uchiha Fugaku for me and I will take care of everything else." Sandaime watched her with a piercing stare, almost as if he had an inkling as to what she planned before nodding and returning to his work. With the silent dismissal, Usagi and the Trio left the Office and returned to their respective homes.

After they had left, the Hokage sighed with so much weariness and stress that he near literally aged by twenty years. 'This is becoming a great nuisance, not even a month and already Uzumaki Usagi is going to be the newest subject on the grapevine and not in a good way. Should it come to physical action I have no doubt that Usagi-san will kill any who approach her or Naruto-kun. Even if it means becoming an enemy of Konoha, she will protect what she has claimed as hers. That has always been the way of the Genkin and always will be.' Pressing the intercom he spoke to his secretary, "Aki-san, I need the presence of ANBU Weasel in my office as soon as possible."

/\/\/\/\/\

Usagi mentally sighed as she walked to the Uzumaki grounds, her plan in itself was a possible recipe for more complications; though not unforeseen ones. She had known exactly what she was getting herself into by ordering that the members died by her hand only; in fact, the reason she had made such an order because she did not want her guardians nor Naruto getting any of the resulting heat. Call her selfless, or selfish for that matter, but she refused to have her loved ones hurt when she had the power to intervene.

From what little memory she had of her time before the 'deal', she had always been like this; just never to the point of obsessive compulsion. She knew though that one of these days she was going to regret being so protective, but till then she would continue being herself.

That didn't stop her from hoping that Kami-sama would give her some relief soon before she did something that made the incident in Kusa look like a picnic.

'Common girlfriend, we have to live our lives without regret or we'll never live at all!!'

Usagi jolted to a stop and looked around for the owner of the voice before she realized what had happened. With a sigh she lifted her head to look at the moon illuminating the sky. "You will never know them even as they exist within your heart. Giving you comfort and advise when you least expect it and can never return." She recited before continuing her journey to her home.

Kaiko, in one of her more 'wise elder' modes, had explained to her in sketchy detail that memories of what she gave up would pop up from time to time. Whether it was the Fates way of reminding her that she was still human or a curse her own subconscious had placed upon herself in order to punish her for forsaking friends and family that had no doubt loved her dearly, she would never know nor understand.

"Onee-chan!!" a very familiar voice shouted ahead of her. Looking up she saw that she had arrived at the house without her notice and that Naruto was waving at her with relief shining in his eyes while her guardians surrounded him protectively.

She felt herself smile behind her mask, she would worry about the outside world later. Right now she had a little brother to take care of and three spirit partners to tease.

Raising her voice a little she called out, "Tadaima."

\/\/\/\/\/\/\

On the other side of Konoha, a figure could be seen reading a scroll with a blank expression. Across from the figure was the kneeling form of ANBU Weasel who had delivered the scroll to the being sitting before him.

With a weary gleam in his eyes, the figure looked up at the ANBU, "Did anyone else besides the Hokage know of the contents of this scroll." It was not a question. The ANBU shuck his head as the figure looked back down at the scroll in his hands.

'Lord Uchiha Fugaku,

Earlier this evening three members of the Uchiha clan entered the off-limit clan grounds of a young and yet unannounced clan. Their intentions were obviously not of good will and due to their lack of care to the warning posted on the gates of this new clan, they were promptly executed without fuss by the head of the clan.

By Clan Laws and the contract forged between the Head and Hokage, the bodies of the three Uchihas are now considered rightful property of the clan. The Head understands that this will cause an outcry within the Uchiha clan and made it clear that such things will not be tolerated if brought to the Clan's doorstep. However, the Head has agreed to meet with you personally to settle this matter at 5 am today at the Tower. Any later and the Head will consider all negotiation attempts worthless and will ignore the Uchiha.

With I, the Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure, as witness both you, the Head of the Uchiha, and the Head of the new clan, who wishes to remain unknown until the meeting, will make proper negotiations. I wish for this to be settled in a fashion that both parties shall agree to adhere. 

Both I and the Head shall await your presence at the Tower at the appointed time.

Konohagakure no Sandaime Hokage 

Sarutobi Hizuren

The now identified Fugaku closed the scroll and looked up at the ANBU still sitting silently before him. "Itachi, I will have you join me at the meeting in seven hours. You will speck nothing of the meeting or that I intend to go there myself. Is that clear." Itachi nodded once and bowed before rising and leaving the room.

Once Fugaku was sure that his eldest son was gone, Fugaku allowed the mask he kept up to fall. His eyes dulled, wrinkles formed at the corners of his eyes and mouth, and his shoulders slumped with an air of exhaustion. Had anyone seen him in that moment, they would have thought that he had become an entirely different person. And in some cases he had.

It was an unspoken fact that those of high stature or with great power had to appear strong and unbreakable to all who saw them. This especially held true for Clan Heads and Kages, for they were the leaders of groups ranging from dozens to thousands. To be seen as weak by anyone, even family, could cause questioning of their leadership capabilities and in many cases be seen as opportunities by rivals to 'get rid' of the competition.

So many leaders had learned the art of masks to keep the image of strength close to them, but in exchange this lead to a sense of isolation. After all, if even family members could become enemies, who could you ever willingly, show your true self to?

Fugaku sighed, more like breathed in and out slowly actually, and tried to remain calm as the full weight of the situation hit him hard. If this meeting did not go well, the Uchiha clan would lose face because of the fact that three of their members had entered clan grounds without permission alone. He didn't even want to imagine what this unknown Clan Head would do with the bodies, because unlike the Hyuuga they did not have a seal to help keep the secrets of their Kekkai Genkkai hidden after death. If the Head wished it, any secrets the three bodies gave up on the Sharingan would become property of that clan.

The thought alone of a clan other than the Uchiha having access to the Sharingan's secrets was enough to make Fugaku shudder.

He had to remember that there were signs of hope even as the situation itself was going to be like walking on the edge of a knife. The Head had been willing to try and make an agreement to settle this whole situation before it escalated into something far more sinister.

Such as the Council taking action to make things 'right' again.

If there was one thing the Council could be counted on to do right, it was turning the situation into a disaster that would suit their greedy needs nicely.

Fugaku sighed again as he glanced at the clock, 'Only five hours left before the Uchiha faces ultimate disgrace or a possible ally.'

He could only hope in the deepest part of his heart that it was the latter.

\/\/\/\////\//\/\\\/\//

Usagi mentally sighed as she felt her guardians enter her room, she did not want to deal with this. It had taken over an hour of reassuring Naruto that 'no' she was not leaving and 'no' he was not in trouble combined with his sudden compulsion to stick to her waist like glue and look at her with what she now considered the deadliest weapon on the planet, the dreaded 'Puppy-dog Eye no jutsu'.

"Ahou, what are you planning."

Usagi looked up from her book "Opening and Running a Business for Dummies" and blinked at her guardians. "Open the link, it's much quicker."

They loosened the barriers surrounding their minds and let information pass into their minds. After a few minutes Naraku growled and the other two frowned as the link closed.

"Ahou, this plan of yours is-"

"I know Naraku-kun, demo I have been studying the village this past week and I have no doubt that the cloud clinging to the very walls is coming from Limbo. There is only one reason why that realm would be opening its gates to the mortal world."

Daichi, who had not spoken a word since Usagi had returned home that night, looked up to stare Usagi in the eyes. "Usagi-sama, are you absolutely sure you want to do this? The boy in Suna was acceptable due to your instincts and the young master was from the desperation to save one of the few pure souls left in this world combined with your blessing from Kishimonjin. However, this one already lives in some form of happiness. Even if his life is in danger, we should not intervene anymore then we already have."

Usagi returned his stare with one of her own, "Iie, I have been given a power that no other being in this world or any other for that matter could possibly dream of. The Fates have ordained that many people die in the near future; that is fact. It is also fact that they have guided me to places that would allow me to become strong for this world. After all, if not for my experience in Kusa than I would never have obtained the courage and resolution needed to take human life." Kaiko looked away while Naraku closed his eyes and Daichi remained unwavering, all of them remaining silent as Usagi's words drove home.

They knew that there was nothing they could have done on that day to help their mistress, but the reminder that they, who had willingly agreed to become this mortal's protectors till she drew her last breath, had been unable to even comfort her during her trial that day was like a stab to their souls.

Usagi continued. "I have the power and the strength to change destinies without consequence to others or myself so long as I do not destroy the Fates Tapestry with my actions. I will not stop what the Fates will demand of this village in the future, demo I will do what I can to make sure that this land has a future to look to. For that I will need children who have the potential to lead the people."

Usagi sighed and then looked out the window with an expression of sadness. "I will not have love or devotion to the people of this village, but I absolutely refuse to condemn this land because of the sins of its people."

Kaiko finally raised her head and repeated a verse that rang true to her contractor's words. "'Thy child is not thy father, thus the sins of thy father shall not fall to thy child.'"

Usagi nodded and smiled as Naraku sighed with resignation. "Even if we try to stop you, you'll just go with it anyway." Naraku then smirked, showing off his canine teeth to his fellow youkai. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

Kaiko's eyes became determined and smiled with resolve at Usagi, who then looked to her last guardian. Of all her guardians, Daichi was the one who held the most power in the mortal world and had the greatest wisdom that could be found in any living creature. It was his approval that she had come to desire more than anything when she decided to do something of this scale. However if he continued to not agree with her on this then she would still go through with it, but it would be with a troubled heart.

The air seemed to grow cold as master and protector stared each other in the eye, neither willing to back down but knowing that this had to be decided soon. Kaiko inched closer to Naraku, who glanced at her for only a second before returning his gaze to the contest going on between the mortal and spirit. For Naraku, this was too similar to the fights for more dominant ranks that were all too common in his tribe. The winner would wield higher power while the loser became a shadow.

The only comfort he took in this fight was that it was a battle of wills and not physical power.

Finally, after what felt like hours of watching their unwavering power push against each other, one finally looked away. Kaiko clenched a fist in some of Naraku's clothes as Naraku stayed silent. The winner walked over to the window and bowed their head while the loser merely remained standing still.

Very slowly, the winner reached for their face and rubbed the sleep out of their eyes before turning to look at the group. The moonlight peeked from behind the clouds, highlighting the scared face that watched them.

With a smile that spook of resolution, determination, and promise, Usagi announced, "I will have two brothers before this day has ended minna-san. That I swear to you all."

Usagi then walked to the door, bypassing the silent Daichi with only the slightest lowering of the head. Entering the hallway, she closed the sliding door gently and walked toward the stairs.

"And may any who stand in my way have the mercy of Amateratsu, for they will find none from me." She whispered to herself, sliding the mask of the Ryuuhasu back into place.

It was time to meet a Clan Head.

\/\/\////\\\\/\///\//\/\/\\\/\/

When Fugaku had arrived at the Hokage's Office, he made sure to follow the protocol when greeting his Kage and was about to sit down when at exactly 5 am he heard the door slide open behind him. When he had turned to greet the unnamed Clan Head, he was greeted with the sight of the one being that he would never have expected to be standing there.

The A-Rank Genkin and Outcast Ryuuhasu, who was also rumored to be called the Raikouyajuu due to his policy of revealing his demonic mask when he intended to kill. He was also an outcast who had gained the favor of two Daimyous and the fear of an entire hidden village within the span of five years.

But this was also the individual who single-handedly slaughtered 39 Konoha civilians in the span of less than one minute for the sake of Konoha's most taboo child. And the fact that he was here now could only mean…

Ryuuhasu politely bowed to both men and nodded to the shinobi the Uchiha Head had brought with him as a witness. Taking the only other seat in the room, she sat down with guarded grace and poise. The Hokage nodded to both Clan Heads. "Now that both parties have arrived, it is time we get to business." Turning his head to the Ryuuhasu he spoke, "If you could describe the situation from your own perspective please."

Usagi nodded to the Kage. "The previous evening ten villagers approached the gates to my clan's territory and three of them were Uchihas. All of them had ignored the sign I had posted on the gates that warned any who intended to enter the grounds uninvited would be dealt with violence. Because of this blant ignorance, I attacked just as I said I would. After the deed was done and all intruders dead, I signaled for any on patrol to come and deliver a message to the Hokage for me as to the state of the situation. After some time, the bodies were sealed away until needed and I was brought to the Tower to speak with the Hokage about the event. Some of our fellow Clan Heads laid witness to the meeting and discussed with me on what actions I should take. After much deliberation, I asked the Hokage to have this meeting with you."

'Blunt with no sign of political sweet-talk, no different than a soldier would give a report.' Fugaku thought as he watched the Genkin-turned-Head throughout the speech. He had to admit though, he was some-what relieved that he would not have to decipher what the fellow Head was intending to say without actually saying it. After dealing with the different Councils and other Heads within the village, it had become all too common for him to have to literally take the shinobi's saying "underneath the underneath" into politics.

"If I may inquire as to who the names of the Uchiha were?" Fugaku asked.

"Their identifications indicate that they are Uchiha Goro, Uchiha Kinto, and Uchiha Ichimaru."

Fugaku mentally banged his head with aggravation. Of all the Uchiha in the village who would dare to break not only a law but a taboo, it had to be those three. "On behalf of my kin the Uchiha clan, I give you my sincerest of apologies. I know of the three you have named very well."

Ryuuhasu tilted his head in question. "The past few months my police force has received complaints from the civilian and shinobi cast that those three in particular had been causing acts of harassment and damage of property. The only reason no one had arrested them was because they never crossed the line in terms of legal law, but they were due to be questioned and detained to not only verify how much trouble they had caused but to decide if they warranted punishment." Fugaku continued. Ryuuhasu nodded in acceptance of his reply.

"Uchiha-san, I wish to know what your clan would most likely demand upon hearing of their deaths." Fugaku had to hold himself back from blinking, the change of topic was completely sudden and slightly discomforting. However the genkin had been nothing but truthful to him thus far and he felt it would be somewhat insulting to not be truthful in turn.

"The main portion of the clan would not demand you of anything considering the reputation of the three and you will have been well in your legal rights, demo the Council will fear of the possibilities of what your clan could learn from the bodies. Even though they are by every law that exists in Konoha your property, they will try to find some way of regaining the bodies. The paranoia left behind from the Kyuubi attack has made them obsessive in their control over the clan." The Sandaime glanced at Fugaku with concealed curiosity. Even for Fugaku, whose tolerance of non-Uchihas was commendable, this was more casual then the Hokage had ever seen the Head with anyone that had no Uchiha blood.

'What is he playing at?'

Usagi nodded and rubbed her masked chin, seeming to contemplate what course of action to take in this mess. However, unknown to the two men, Usagi had already foreseen this and had come up with proper responses for the situation to fall in her favor even more. But she would still have to tread carefully; she, more than anyone, understood the emotional power this particular discussion had. Lowering her hand to her lap she spoke with a voice that could be considered similar to silk-wrapped steel. "Lord Uchiha-san, how about a trade?"

"A trade, Ryuuhasu-san?" Usagi nodded.

"In ancient times when rival clans wished to cease a war they would usually trade objects of great importance to that particular clan as a sign of good will, among other things. In this situation the objects from my clan would be the bodies of your kinsmen. Even in this day in age, clans will trade to help the village keep the peace." Fugaku almost tensed at that, and remained pensive as he thought over the possibility. A trade was very possible and it would show fair play from both clans, and considering that the Ryuuhasu had also indirectly mentioned the incident involving the Hyuuga clan during the Kumo delegations it was safe to say that if it came to it the Ryuuhasu would go to the Hyuuga for help. Hiashi never did get over his brother's sacrifice even after all these years and to see his clan's rivals not willing to make similar sacrifices….

"I believe a trade would indeed be a wise and fair choice. The bodies would be returned in exchange for something that would be of proper value." Fugaku replied.

Usagi nodded and shifted her body into a posture of calm and unthreatening motive. The air loosened some of the tension that had formed during the meeting as the ninja instinctively recognized that the genkin was saying to them in body language that s/he was trying to be friendly. Sarutobi almost smiled at the tactic. It was well known among ninja that using one's body to speak for them was essential in the field. It was a useful tool that allowed you to tell if the person walking to past you was friend or foe just by how they walked and held themselves. A twitch could tell you if your opponent was going to attack or surrender, a shift in footing screamed if they were going to flee, even a fraction of an eye movement would tell if the opponent was delaying you. Ninjas, literally, could have entire conversations without specking a word if they knew the proper body motions to use. This of course led to honest mistakes and misunderstandings when civilians were brought into the picture, but we'll ignore that for now.

"Uchiha-san, what do you think would warent proper for the return of three dead bodies? Something as simple as a jutsu scroll would be insulting and I doubt secrets of the Sharingan would do either because I could simply learn from the bodies if I wished."

"I truly have no inclination as to what would serve as proper compensation at this moment Ryuuhasu-san." He replied.

'Time to drop the bomb-shell then.' Usagi thought.

"Uchiha-san, as a follower of ancient traditions I believe that this situation would be best suited for one such similar situation." At his unvoiced question she continued, "When samurai were the warriors of status and not ninjas, a samurai family found themselves stuck in a feud with another samurai family. The only son and heir of the other clan had tried to do some unhandedly things to one of the daughters of the clan and was killed in self-defense on the daughter's clan territory. The other family demanded the body for though he had brought shame to the clan he had not committed the crime but the daughter's clan wanted his head on a pike as a warning. The elders gathered together and after an entire day of debate it was decided that in return for dropping charges the clan would receive the next born son of the other clan." The room became silent and the temperature dropped noticeably. The Sandaime glanced between the two, now completely nervous about this whole thing.

Fugaku forcibly restrained himself from jumping up in outrage from the mere inclination of the idea. "You ask of me to give up one of my clan's children?"

"Iie, Uchiha-san, I ask of you to give me one of your sons."

The room was completely silent, nothing made a sound as Usagi's words rang in Fugaku's head. Sarutobi fingered his pipe and the ANBU that had been in constant watch of the meeting shifted just an inch. Fugaku took a deep breath. "Why would you ask for a child of all things Ryuuhasu-san?"

"Because Uchiha-san, the living have more rights than the dead. If I wanted to I could have ignored any attempt from your clan to keep the bodies and learn from them everything that I would need to know about the Sharingan. However a living person will not have to face such things because of this village's laws. Besides, do you really think I would harm a child of any sort?" she scolded at the last sentence. Fugaku gave her the Uchiha Glare #10 aka "The-burn-in-Hell-then-burn-some-more" glare as his mind ran 100mph to think of a way out of this. A clan head he may be, but a father he still was. He had been ready to raise Hell after the Council decided to have Itachi become the Pride of the clan had Itachi himself not let him know it was alright and even now Fugaku would start something if the Council showed any sign of overstepping the bounds with any of his sons.

For a complete stranger to demand for one of his sons, he would commit seppuku and murder before willingly complying. 'Demo…' The Ryuuhasu had already made it clear that a trade would be the only acceptable agreement. And the truth was……

"Fugaku-san?" Fugaku stared into the hidden eyes of the genkin without emotion. "Fugaku-san, I will only say this one more time, either give me your son or face ultimate disgrace."

"……………"

"Fuagku-san?"

"…………………………which son do you require?"

The truth was that the clan would willingly agree to this trade so long as it was-

"Your youngest son."

-Sasuke.

Everyone in the room watched the Head of the Uchiha Clan. The tension in the room was as sharp as a knife just waiting to be used, just waiting for the right words to be said. Sarutobi took a deep breath and let the smoke rise slowly, the ANBU remained as still as ice, Usagi stared straight into Fugaku's eyes with a coldness that made even Fugaku want to shiver; and the Head wasn't even unmasked for Kami's sake!

And for the first and only time in his life, Fugaku let his mask fall enough to make him seem weary for only a second before reining his mask back on. Boring his gaze into where he knew the genkin's eyes were, he stated coldly, "In exchange for my youngest son, Uchiha Sasuke, my clan will receive the bodies of the three Uchiha that intruded onto your lands."

Most of the tension left the room as soon as Fugaku's spoke. Sarutobi mentally heaved a sigh of relief as the two clan Heads began to do the usual small talk that all official meetings needed and started to write down the document that would seal the deal. Finishing it, he handed the paper to the Heads to look over it and make sure it fit their bills.

Satisfied, both Head's cut their fingers and wrote their names in blood to seal the deal.

Making a few hand signs, Sarutobi placed his hand on the document and there was a poof of smoke. When the smoke disappeared there were three documents present, one for both Heads and the Sandaime, and each with the Sandaime's personal seal. Usagi took one and bowed politely to the Uchiha and began to leave the room.

Before she opened the door she turned to Fugaku. "It will take about a week to prepare an adequate room for the boy. On the last day I will come to your clan's compound and deliver him to the Uzumaki compound myself." Without another word she opened the door and left the room.

Fugaku felt his skin pale.

\/\//\/\///\\/\

In another dimension, a single thread in the great Tapestry tied itself to the only metallic thread in the cloth. Three women previously working around it stopped then slowly turned their heads to stare at the change in the Tapestry and shook their heads in exasperation. One of these days they were going to strangle Selenity for making them have to deal with this crap.

\/\/\/\/\/\/

Usagi held her breath as she held the doorknob and with a pray to Tsukiyomi opened the door. The entirety of the Uzumaki clan stared at her from the stairs. Naraku twitched.

3….

2…..

1…..

"YOU F—KING BAKA AHOU!!!!!!!!!!" Usagi could only thank Kami-sama for the existence of chakra at that moment, for without it holding her down to the ground she would probably been sent flying by her p. guardian's shout. She didn't have time to put her clothes back into place when Naruto jumped her with the dreaded Puppy-dog Eye no jutsu. Sweatdrops formed as Usagi looked to her guardians for help but nearly cried when she saw them run up the stairs with smirks, or curved mouth in Daichi's case.

"Onee-chan where were you!?!" Naruto screamed at her with tears adding to the kicked puppy affect. Usagi twitched, her mind scrambling to find an excuse that would not send her emotionally abused brother into another fit.

'Oh what the heck, I'm tired and in need of my beauty-sleep!' "Naruto-kun congratulations, you have a sibling. Now get off and let me go sleep till noon." Without even waiting for him to get off she stomped into the house, Naruto's whining audible throughout the compound.

"Onee-chan, what's a sibling?!"

\/\/\\

1/16/09

I hope you like my revised versions of chapters 3-8!! ^__^

And just so you know I have seen only a few possible parings in my reviews, TT___TT, so unless you wat to leave me to my own devices then you better give me some more input. After all, with me you never know who will end up with who! Ja!


	9. Important Notice

Notice

In case you guys didn't notice I revised many of the chapters and I hope you like the changes I made.

Just so you know, I take both signed and unsigned reviews now.

On a very important note, so far I've only had these requests for secondary pairings:

Naruto/Hinata: 2

Naruto/Sasuke: 1

…………………………..

………………………~____~III

……………Come on people, where's all of the enthusiasm I saw in previous chapters?

If you guys think you need to choose from my picks then here's an entire list for you to choose from.

Narutox?:

Sasuke

Sakura

Hinata

Tenten

Ino

Anko (trust me I've seen many of these enough to figure out how to make it work ~_~II)

Temari

Haku (male or female?)

Anyone else?

Sasukex?:

Sakura

Hinata

Ino

Temari

Tenten

Haku (male or female?)

Any male of choice?

Anyone else?

Sakurax?:

Neji

Itachi

Kiba

Ino

Chouji

Shikamaru

Shino

Lee

Haku (male or female?)

Any female of choice?

Anyone else?

Any other pairings you may want to see that is not listed?

Don't be shy people. I have nothing against either homosexual or heterosexual relationships or even the occasional incest pairing. 'Cause let's face it, in this anime I don't think they have such strict ideals on relationships. Considering the shinobi lifestyle can make you question any sort of morals you have, I truly believe that in the Naruto world it's not wrong to admit you find your own gender or family member attractive.

I know that this may make some of my readers uncomfortable due to religion or personal beliefs, but all I ask is that you keep an open mind. If it makes you uncomfortable or something you can stop reading my fic or you can send a review that lets me know so that I will try to keep some things in mind.

I truly don't want to insult anyone who reads my fics, this is just my personal belief. I hope you enjoyed my fic anyway.

Ja!


	10. Chapter 9

Umiki: Hi everyone. I know a lot of you are probably mad at me for not updating sooner but I have a confession to make.

The past nine months I have spent my time working more on a fic I am calling the Shield of Gaia, a SM/FFVII crossover over all of my other fics. I have worked on some of my other works and created some new ones, but for the most part I have been working on SoG. I was able to create two chapters for RotCS, but as of chapter 10 I have fallen into a state of hitus on this fic. I have already reached chapter twelve of Stage 1 on SoG, mindful they are smaller then RotCS chapters, but I am putting a lot more effort in doing SoG than RotCS.

With that in mind I am trying to post both of the RotCS chapters I made now and be done with it.

Release of the Caged Soul ch. 9

\/\/\///\\/

Uchiha Sasuke was scared.

For the past few days he had been treated by many in his family with either a cold shoulder or a kindness that he had never seen before. His aunts and uncles would give him candy and other treats for free while his cousins would give him small gifts or ignore him completely. His mother would become teary-eyed every time she looked at him and his father would not even look him in the eye. But the actions of his brother were what really shocked him.

Itachi, the seemingly perfect killer, had embraced him. It was only for a few seconds, but it was enough to make Sasuke feel fear on an unimaginal scale. His brother never had any time for him for anything but one or two sentences a day, let alone hugging him. Something was deffinatly going on if his cold brother was showing such emotion.

Uchiha Sasuke was scared…..

………..but he was not stupid.

He had noticed the shift in attitude had started not even a day after his father had called for a clan meeting baring Sasuke. The meeting itself had lasted barely an hour but afterwards his mother had nearly dashed out of the room in tears and his father had only looked at him with an emotion that he had never seen before before he walked past him without a word.

Finally after four days of this odd behavior, Sasuke had had enough. Mustering as much bravado and frustration he had, he approached his father and asked him what had happened and why he was receiving such treatment.

His father had stared at him for what seemed like an eternity and caused much of his nerve to disappear, and just before he tried to appologise for his rudeness and leave his father answered him.

"_You will become the Uchiha clan's sacrifice in order to keep the peace with the Uzumaki clan. In three days the Uzumaki Head will arrive to take you to your new home." _

The world had stopped moving for Sasuke since then.

Everything passed with a dream-like quality, as if it was not real and would disappear when he woke up.

But it didn't disappear.

On the seventh day, a tall figure dressed in some strange hooded-cloak arrived at dusk with a large spotted cat at her side. With all his possessions snuggly stored in the scrolls in his back-pack, Sasuke was lead by his red-eyed mother and stony father to the gates. His brother was already at the gate and he just stared at the figure the entire time she was here.

Stepping foreward Usagi took a scroll from her sleeve and handed it to Fugaku, who nodded stiffly back. Turning to Sasuke, she kneeled in front of him so that they were eye level. "Hello Sasuke-san, my name is Uzumaki Usagi. It is a pleasure to meet you." She held out her hand. Sasuke stared at it blankly before taking hold of it. Usagi then shaked it up and down. Sasuke gave her an odd look, which made Usagi smile behind her mask. "This is how my people greet people they have never met before. It shows that they are equals and are welcomed. I am not surprised that you would have no knowledge of this form of greeting Sasuke-san, I hail from a very far-off land." Tilting her head a little to the side, the people watching could feel her unseen smile. "I hope that I did not insult you."

Sasuke shaked his head. "I wasn't." Usagi nodded and rose up from her kneeling position. Dusting off her cloak she clapsed her hands and then bowed to Mikito with respect.

"Uchiha-sama, know that I will take care of your son as if he was of my blood and raise him to be a good man. I humbly swear this to you." Mikito held back tears as she bowed her head to the Uzumaki leader. Usagi turned to Itachi and did a second bow. "Uchiha-sama, I promise that your sibling will find comfort in my house. Should you wish to see him or vice versa you need but ask." Itachi did nothing more then tilt his head an inch. Giving the deepest bow to Fugaku she said, "I promised you Uchiha-sama that this will settle this whole affair and I will keep my promise. Just know that though he may now be my sibling he is still your son, something that no matter what happens will always be true."

Finally turning to Sasuke she gave him his own bow, to his astonishment. "Sasuke-san, I will try to make your life comfortable in my home, all that I ask from you is that you be yourself. Is that fair enough?"

Sasuke stared at her with surprise before giving her a simple nod. Usagi nodded back and motioned Daichi to go on ahead. Reaching out her hand again she tilted her head. Sasuke hesitated only for a moment.

Mikito watched with resigned sorrow as her youngest son walked away from what had been his home his entire life without looking back. She felt her eldest leave quietly and her husband remain standing at the gate, staring at the retreating figures with no emotion.

Internally swearing to Usagi that she would hold her to her promise even if it killed her, she turned back to the compound and retired to the house.

\//\/

As the Uzumaki head and her newest sibling walked down the road, Usagi mentally sighed as she saw more than a few people glaring at her cloaked form. This had been happening every time she went into town and it was driving her paranoia to new hights.

"So Sasuke-san, what is your favorite color. And don't you say the Uchiha's favorite color 'casue I know that each member has their own secret favorite." Sasuke looked up at her.

"Why?"

"Haven't painted your room yet." Sasuke felt something close to a sweatdrop form when she said that.

"Blue, dark blue." Usagi smiled behind her mask.

"Hope you're ready for a surprise when I finish then 'cause when I get a brush and some paint, ho boy!" Sasuke's sweatdrop grew larger as his new clan leader giggled madly.

Usagi suddenly stopped giggling so quickly that Sasuke wondered if something was wrong. He got his answer when some civilians blocked their path.

They did not look pleased.

"Why do you have Uchiha-kun with you, de-Uzumaki? No one from such a prestigious clan would be seen within twenty feet of your clan's filth." A male villager sneered. The others nodded behind him, disgust and hate in their eyes. Usagi mentally sighed, she had in truth been wondering how long it would be before they tried something, she just never expected them to try it in front of a child. The villagers always tried to be careful when they were around.

"Sasuke-san is now a part of the Uzumaki clan by agreement with the Uchiha Head. As the clan head it is only natural that I personally escort my newest brother to his new home." Letting a little KI out, she lowered her voice. "There would not be a problem now would there? Because if so then take it up with the Uchiha clan. They are the police force are they not?"

Nudging the slightly trembling Sasuke, she maneuvered him around the stiff villagers and made sure to send the image of the villagers faces to her guardians. She always made sure to catalog any detail no matter where she went on the people she saw. There were always three catagories with this list. Those who do nothing, those that do minute action, and those who publicly approach her.

She always made sure to have her guardians remember the faces of the last two.

Before she knew it both of them reached the entrance to the grounds without another incedent. Usagi couldn't help but smile at the _clean_ feel to the air here. Sasuke seemed to feel it too because he tugged on her sleeve and looked up at her with some trepidation.

Usagi patted his head. "The air here is not affected by the pollutinants found regularly in a village atmosphere." Sasuke gave her a look. "Meaning it is far more cleaner in the grounds then out." Nudging him again, they began the treck from the entrance to the center of the grounds. For Sasuke the trek was slow but dream-like almost, he had never felt so at peace as when he had been outside of the compound.

All too soon they reached the house. Usagi paused and kneeled before Sasuke with an aura of seriousness. "Whatever you do, do not be startled by your new family members okay. Especially your new brother in particular. Okay?" Sasuke gazed back at her with confusion and bewilderment before nodding. Smiling at him, Usagi stood back up and opened the door.

The now familiar weight of her fox-brother latched onto her waist and without missing a beat started talking one-hundred miles an hour about how his day was, who was the boy next to her, how Naraku looked funny in pink, and that dinner was-wait what?!

"Slow down Naruto-kun! What's this about Naraku-kun in pink?" Usagi asked her brother in astonishment. Naruto gave her that foxy grin of his and motioned her over to the back. Curious, she took of her shoes and followed him to the backyard; what she saw had her clutching her stomach as she fell to the ground in pure agonized laughter. Sasuke, who had followed her, felt his eye twitch violently as he too laid eyes on the extremely disturbing sight before him.

There, tied up like a Christmas present with ribbons, pink paper, and a bow ta' boot, was a gagged Naraku with phrases written on his face in pink marker. His face was so red that Usagi swore to herself that the next time she asked Naraku what he wanted to eat, she would make sure to mention cherries or apples. The moment he saw Naruto he started to yell through the gag and tried to kick himself into standing, when that didn't work he tried to furiously crawl like a catipiler towards them.

Only to end up falling through a pit trap.

Even with the gag on they could hear the scream of rage he bellowed from the bottom. Usagi laughed even harder as tears fell down her face and seeped past her mask.

Sasuke just stared at the two laughing psychopaths next to him. He may have never seen one before, but in his opinion these two were the closest things to maniacs he was every going to see.

"Ah you must be Sasuke-san." A monotone voice spoke from behind the boy. Turning to look at the speaker, Sasuke could not help but stare at the…being standing there.

Before he could stop himself he blurted, "You have horns." He clamped his hands over his mouth in shock, he would never have dared to speak as such within the Uchiha compound and never to someone's face.

From behind her mask Usagi smiled. She had to admit that she was intrigued at how quickly Sasuke had taken to the aura cleansing the Uzumaki grounds induced. Even Naruto had taken five days before his soul had been cleansed of any harmful spiritual impurities. The Kyuubi not withstanding.

Daichi merely nodded to Sasuke's statement. "Indeed I do. If it makes you uncomfortable I can hide them with a henge." Sasuke shook his head and felt blood rush to his cheeks as he lowered his head.

"No, no it is fine. I was just…" Daichi nodded again before directing his stare to the pit.

"It would seem the young master has shown us his more playful nature." Naruto looked nervous for a moment before Daichi continued. "I see no reason to scold him though. This will be a lesson for both him and our dear hell-hound."

"YOU F--KING ASS LET ME OUT OF HERE NO-!" Naraku did not get to finish his rant as the group watched at least ten different pots and pans appear out of nowhere and drop into the pit. Naruto winced after hearing a particularly painful yelp.

Daichi put his hand on Sasuke's head for a second before removing it, ignoring Sasuke suddenly tensing at the contact. "The absolute rule of the Uzumaki clan young Sasuke, do not say course language in front of children and not until you yourself reach at least fourteen or genin level. Disobay this rule and you will meet mistress's favorite home appliances."

Kaiko popped her head out of the kitchen window and held up a _large_ wooden spoon that had a broken saucer, "Mr. Spoon has yet to be replaced." Sasuke felt a phantom pain in his backside and took a step back from the nasty looking instrument.

Naruto paled and laughed nervously at the sight of the home appliance. Sasuke glanced at him and Naruto, seeing the look, whispered to him, "Nee-chan loves using spoons, belts, and cooking pans. So far I've only received Mr. Spoon, Ni-san always gets the pots and pans, and she has only held the belt up as a warning. Just don't do anything that she hates and she won't bring them out."

"I can hear you Naruto." Usagi loudly proclaimed. Naruto comically tensed. Kaiko gave them a hearty laugh and Daichi shook his head before heading back inside. Naraku weakly climbed out of the hole, his head a collection of bumps. He gave the fox-boy a glare before dragging himself back inside as well.

Usagi chuckled to herself as she placed one hand on each boy's shoulder. "Come on you two. We have a lot to do before this place can truly be called home."

All three walked into the house without another word and, just for a moment, the entire village seemed to brighten with hope.

\//\/\\/

Two weeks later Naruto, Sasuke, Kaiko, Daichi, and Naraku were tense as they listened to the sounds of something banging on the second floor. A muffled curse soon followed and not a minute later something crashed loudly followed yet again by another, more recognisible, curse. All five of the Uzumaki members glanced at each other nervously as they prayed that giving their sister/ward free reign of the paint job would not come back to bite them in the ass.

Usagi had shooed them all out of the second floor earlier that day after she announced that she was going to be painting the second floor. She had apparently not been joking to the family when she said that she would be the one to decorate their living space.

The air of excitement she had been emitting when she told them earlier had been so obvious that not a single one of them had the heart to deny her though.

Sasuke turned his gaze to Daichi, who strangely enough turned out to be the guardian the former Uchiha was the most comfortable with, and spoke in a slightly hushed tone. "Was it really a good idea to leave her by herself?" Daichi gave him a look that roughly translated into 'No but would you have stopped her when she's in one of her modes?' Sasuke slumped in defeat at that.

Naruto winced again when he heard something like glass shattering more than once. Considering that the sounds were coming from his room he had a deep seeded dread that his room was going to be pronounced a disaster zone.

With aruas of dread the entire Uzumaki clan continued to wait as the sounds of controlled chaos took place in the upper level of their house.

Hours later Usagi finally came down from the second floor, surprisingly no longer wearing her usual genkai clothes. Instead she was wearing a pair of loose grey pants, a blue t-shirt, and a plain wooden mask with a small rectangle for a mouth and two green tear drops under the upturned half-moon shaped eyes.

With a giggle Usagi bound up to her younger brothers and dragged them up the stairs before they could even open their mouths to protest. The guardians shared a glance before deciding to follow them.

Just to be sure their ward didn't cause her brothers to have an accident.

Upstairs the boys were tense as they stood infront of Naruto's room, both of them fearful of what their new sister would unleash on them. Usagi was oblivious to her brothers unease, she was still in cloud nine at the prospect of her achievement receiving praise.

Turning to them USagi gave them one of her unseen but felt grins. "And now for the presentation of one Uzumaki Naruto!" With flourish she pulled the door aside to show her work. The boy's jaws dropped, Sasuke's with awed-horror and Naruto's with estatic-joy.

Naruto's room was washed in a yellow color similar to Naruto's hair, with varying shades of orange clouds. Turning to look at the wall with the door, Naruto's jaw dropped even further when he saw the kanji script written in red. Many of the kanji were foreign to him so he couldn't understand all of them, but he could feel something coming from them, some sort of energy. He heard his sister giggle and turned to her in confusion. She pointed to the ceiling and looking up fell in love.

On the ceiling was a large ramen bowel fill to the brim with all sorts of ingredients that made the broth look just perfect. The bowel was surrounded by circles of orange and red clouds that had the same kanji script in yellow only there were entire sequences of them, all with the same feel of faint energy emitting from them. At the corners of the ceiling were chopsticks, looking like they were creeping towards the bowel, preparing to strike.

Naruto turned his entire body to Usagi, who was stading at the ready for his approval ratings. Then without warning Naruto jumped her and began to chant many things, among them 'thankyou' and 'yourthebest'. Sasuke was torn between respect, fear, and anticipation. He could see her skills in the art of painting were superb and advanced but not that of a masters, yet the foreign kanji was making him feel a strange sense of apprehension. He too could feel the energy coming from them.

Sasuke was brought out of his thoughts when Usagi grabbed his hand and dragged him to his room down the hall. It took him a moment for him to regain his composure as Usagi made her second declaration.

"And now presenting the room of Sasuke!"

What he saw made his jaw drop.

His walls were painted with a royal blue that in the fading sun looked navy blue. Like Naruto's room there were designs of clouds on the walls but these clouds were dark grey. Glancing to his door, he confirmed that the foreign seals were also there. With a silent gulp, he lifted his head to look at his ceiling. His eyes nearly popped out of there sockets.

It was a scene of a full moon surrounded by ocean waves, and like Naruto's room there were entire sequences of the strange kanji within the waves. Heck some of them looked like they were actually weaving around or through the water giving it a sense of realism that for some reason made Sasuke shiver. At the corners of the ceiling were sea creatures that Sasuke did not recognize but looked mighty and fearsome.

Sasuke was dragged from his inspection by a nudge from his side. Giving a small glare to Naruto he turned his attention to his new clan head, who had been waiting to hear what he thought about his new room. Mustering his will Uchiha-Uzumaki Sasuke spoke only two words.

"It's fine." The sparkiling aura that suddenly appeared around Usagi was enough to nearly blind the young boy. Outside the room the three guardians shared a glance.

They almost dreaded the moment when their ward discovered her brothers' desire to become ninja.

\/\/\/\\//\/\/\/\

"Onee-sensei, is this right?"

Usagi looked up from her cataloging to see three of her five students holding the herbs she had assigned them to find. She motioned them to lay them on the cloth in front of her and they complied.

Playing the part of a good teacher, she looked over their catch throughaly and checked for any sign of it being unusable. After five minutes she lifted her masked head and gave them an unseen smile. "Well done you three. Keep this up and soon all of you will be able to go on to the second level." All of the girls began glowing at her praise. It was fact among them that their teacher was strict in her lessons and gave praise only when it was earned. Usagi herself did not know how she allowed herself to take on the role of teacher but here she was, teaching children the art her own sensei had taught her.

The whole thing started a month after Sasuke had joined the family. She had been stunned to find out that her brothers had the desire to become ninja and had cursed up a storm when they told her that. She, as a retired-genkai, knew just what sort of life was in store for them by following such a profession. However, after a few hours thinking it over she realized that on some levels they didn't have a choice in becoming ninjas. Sasuke, as an Uchiha-born, was literally _bred_ for some sort of life in the military. The drive for power that had been genetically bred into the Uchiha clan generations ago along with the constant possibility of his Sharingan awakening alone had given her migraines of just what Sasuke could become in the future. Naruto was the jailer of the Kyuubi-no-Kitsune. His personality was so hyperactive that he gave _ANBU_ a run for their money at times. Enough said.

The next day she had waited for everyone to sit at the dinning table before telling the glum-than-shocked boys that they had her permission to join the Academy class starting next month. However, she had made it clear that all family members would have a fine understanding of the proper use of herbs. "_If you two want to be shinobi, than I intend for you to know what sort of herbs can be used should you want to heal or to poison. And you will listen."_ They had been smart enough not to argue with her about it.

Not long after they had started the Academy they also began taking evening classes with her where they would spend one or two hours talking about herbology and its uses for shinobi life before spending the rest of the night, baring dinner, doing homework or playing Shogi, Go, or Chinese Checkers. She intended for this pattern to work for six days of the week, with the seventh being a free day for them to do what they want.

It was during the second lesson when she had called out all of the girls watching them and made it clear that if they wanted to watch them then they would learn something from it. Only three of the girls stayed in the lessons by the end of the week and now after four months of teaching Usagi could say that she enjoyed it. Haruno Sakura, Hyuuga Hinata, and Yamaka Ino, the three were diamonds in the rough when it came to herbs it seemed.

Ino showed great talent in the usage of the offensive portions of the herbs and Usagi had no doubt that she would make a great poison master if she kept this up. Hinata had the right mindset to be a healer and thanks to her Byakugan she could easily see what sort of problems were being done to the body. This was especially true when her eyes could watch what sort of symtoms were taking place as a poison coursed through the body. Both of their family's had given her their permission to teach them her art for different reasons.

Inoichi had nearly hugged her and told her that this would help her in her studies of the plant world, his wife had merely winked at her. Hiashi had tersly told her that Hinata's learning under her had helped the shy Hyuuga's confiance issues and thus her usage of the Jyuuken had improved. As long as this continued Hinata would be allowed to learn under her.

Sakura was a progeny. There was no other way of saying it. Usagi had been amazed to find out that Sakura had photographic memory and could soak up the lessons in hours. Usagi had half a mind to take her as an official apprentice. The only problem was the flat out no Sakura's 'father' would have given her. Usagi allowed herself to sneer behind her mask. The Haruno patriarch was an alcoholic and a freverent Kyuubi-hater, and had nearly thrown a fit when he learned of Sakura's lessons under the 'Uzumaki-whore' Clan Leader. Sakura's mother on the other hand had all but verbally begged her to keep Sakura as far away from her father during the day as possible.

Usagi knew that if things got out of hand the father was going to do something that would permenatlly scar Sakura, and she had a feeling it was going to happen soon. And speaking of family members….

"Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, both of you cease fighting in my presence or I will bring out the belt." She growled sternly. The girls giggled as the currently tied up boys pouted and tried to look away from each other. They were both tied to each other at the ankle and were carrying their own handfuls of herbs, but the glare they sent at each other and the condition of some of the herbs told her that once again they had gotten into a contest. Ever since Sasuke had called Naruto a dobe, for whatever reasons, they had taken on a brother-rival-friend relationship. They were brothers in name, rivals when one wanted to outdo the other, and friends the rest of the time. It was enough to pull her hair out sometimes.

Naruto decided to speak first. "The teme started it!" Sasuke scowled at Naruto in turn.

"You were being a dobe dobe! How can anyone be able to deal with you like that?!" Their glares started to flare electricity. The girls giggling grew. Usagi growled harder and suddenly brought out a nasty looking belt with a large buckle. Both boys instantly shut up and stood to attention like soldiers.

"If you both keep this up I _**will**_ use this on your rear ends! I tie you both together so that you can learn some restraint but you both just won't do it! (sigh) Look you guys, there will come a time when you both will have to work together in order to not only survive but to protect those important to you. Think of this, if I end up knocked out and the only ones who can save me are you two. If you both suddenly start fighting with each other what do you think the enemy is going to do, let you bicker? No, they're going to kill you both then me."

Both Naruto and Sasuke looked to the ground, the faces showing how uncomfortable they were with that image in their minds. They would never admit it, well Naruto maybe considering his personality, but they had come to love Usagi as if she really was their blood. Even though they had never once seen her face since she was always wearing a mask, to them she was the most beautiful woman they had ever known. She would teach them, treat them like a family would, and she would silently heal the wounds on their hearts that the village had placed upon them. The thought of her getting hurt because of them was enough to make them actually feel sick.

Before she could continue speaking to them, Usagi felt a twing in the back of her head that usually acomanied her aura-sensing powers when someone came within a certain distance of her. She did not even have to think twice on who it was either. Only one person besides Sandaime dared to come visit the fields during her lessons and was probably one of the few she respected and tolerated within the village.

Turning her head to the left she bowed her masked face in respect. "Itachi-san, I trust you had no trouble finding us." Sasuke's head snapped towards the direction she had looked and in an instant gained a hopeful and proud look. Which turned to embarrassment when he remembered his situation. He ducked his head and thus did not see Itachi's "Uchiha face" soften for a moment, but Usagi did and thanked her patron gods yet again for the invention of masks. They were excellent tools in shielding one's facial expressions, especially if one did not want another to think they were being teased.

The Uchiha gave her a courteous bow and nodded his head to the children before replying to her previous sentence. "Iie Uzumaki-sama, there was no problem." Usagi motioned for the heir to sit which he did so. He gave the herbs gathered an inventory look, "Uko weeds, well known for there soothing properties for the throat when the stems are boiled and ingested. The leaves can be made into a paste and can be used as a numbing solution. When the flowers are eaten raw it can cause the opposite effect and make the one who ingested it suffer from ingestion. A common and useful plant in the shinobi world." Returning his gaze to the children, especially Sasuke, he gave them a muted look of approval.

Sasuke would secretly hold that memory in his heart for years. Naruto blushed and looked sheepish while the girls giggled again in pleased delight. Usagi mentally cooed when she saw Sakura blush and look at the Uchiha with a gaze of adortion before it disappeared. She just loved watching crushes form in children, at this age a crush was formed from pure intentions instead of when the children became preteens that acted on instinct and hormones. She also liked the idea of the slowly melting Uchiha heir taking a shine to her little protege. Now that she thought about it maybe she could get Mikito-san, Haruno-san, and herself to have a little get-together and…._talk_ about some things.

Everyone on the hill stared at the sight of the Uzumaki Head laughing like a maniac and shacked their heads, except Itachi who watched with silent confusion. They had become too used to the Uzumaki Head's….unique thought process popping up from time to time.

Mentally slapping herself back into sanity, Usagi placed her forefinger on her chin. "By the way Itachi-san, would you and your parents like to share dinner with my clan tonight? You yourself only visit so often, and Sasuke has not seen his birth parents in a long time. I am not one to deny one of my brothers the pleasure of his blood-kins' company from time-to-time."

Itachi remained silent for a few moments before replying, "I will see if Oto-sama or Okaa-sama will be able to come tonight Usagi-sama. I have to check with ANBU before agreeing though. My apologies." Usagi nodded in understanding but smiled at the hopeful glow Sasuke gained. Turning to the girls she decided why not. "You three are welcome to share dinner with us tonight as well." All three looked pleased and nodded quickly, Sakura more so than the other two.

Usagi scowled.

Clapping her hands, the signal that lessons were done for the day, she collected the herbs together and secured them in the cloth. Standing up she motioned for her brothers to go ahead. They did so, although Naruto forgot they were still tied together and tried to dash ahead, leading them both to falling to the ground in a tangle of limbs and yells. The girls also stood up and began leaving but before Sakura could leave Usagi pulled her aside.

"Sakura-chan, is something bothering you? I have noticed your lack of enthusiasm these past few days and I am worried." Usagi calmly asked the now tense child. Sakura kept her eyes glued to the ground and shuffled her feet nervously, biting her lip when Usagi's unseen stare began to bore into her.

Sakura finally spoke, albit with extreme unease, "N-nothing is wrong sensei. I just didn't feel so good, that's all." Usagi continued to give her student an unseen stare, easily seeing through the white lie Sakura had just said. Before she could ask any further Ino called out for Sakura to hurry up. With obvious relief Sakura hurridly bowed and dashed away from the Clan Head. Usagi watched the child's retreating form with contemplation before mentally summoning Daichi to her side.

Daichi arouse from the earth like it was water and turned to his mistress, waiting for her orders. "Go to Sakura-chan's house, if anything happans watch it but only interfere if it gets out of hand. Report back in time for dinner." Nodding to her, he transformed into his animal form before shrinking down to resemble a house cat and dashed off in the direction of Sakura's home.

Usagi stood there for a few minutes before letting out a sigh and walking over to the nearest tree. Placing her hand on it she spoke softly in 'tree-talk', "_Am I doing the right thing, letting myself be tied down like this?" _

The tree swayed in the wind. "_You are doing what your heart believes is right. In time a bond grows stronger and one day those children will help you heal from the burdens and curses you live under. You cannot deny that ever since you became the sister of those two human children, the friend of the Fan's heir, and the teacher of the three girls, that you have healed in heart._"

Usagi rested her head against the bark. No matter how many times she asked the trees and plants, her personal confidents, they always replied that she had done the right thing. No matter what angle she used in asking it, they always told her what they believed and always said her actions did good.

Yet why did she still feel like she was breaking from the inside out?

\//\///\\\\//\/


	11. Chapter 10

Umiki: Hi everyone. As I promised in the previous chapter I give you not one but two chapters in this update.

Now a Little thing you need to know that's waiting at the end of the fic. I will have put the results so far on the Team 7 pairings at the end of this chapter. These are not the complete results, but by the time I regain my drive to write more for RotCS again I will have finished the poll for the pairings.

By the way, you will not believe the results thus far after I tallied the poll.

Now on with the show!

RotCS 10

In a tree outside of a moderate-sized compound a sparrow finished cleaning itself and ruffled its feathers. With a few shivers the feathers sleeked down. The sparrow flapped its wings a few times before flying to a lower branch that was right next to an open window on the second floor. Peering inside was a sight not unusual to the sparrow, for this area was one of its favorite resting spots.

On the other side of the window was a paint gallery that had painting materials, finished, and half-finished works strewn all over the walls, floor, and desk. Sitting in a visible corner on a stool was the figure of a woman, and in front of her was a blank canvas. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest and in her left hand was her favorite brush. She was tapping her brush on her crossed arm in a slow but steady beat, frustration coating every twitch her body made. Her legs were crossed as she sat on the stool, making the woman look like one of those eccentric merchants found throughout the village; like that lazy and leery candy merchant with the folding fan and his ugly green and white stripped bucket hat. Resting on its own personal stool to her left was a set of her special paints that she reserved for only her best works. Under her stool was a huge snake that wound around the stool at least two times; resting as if it owned the piece of furniture.

Suddenly the woman made a sound of excitement as she finally got the perfect idea for her next work. Steadily dipping her brush in one color and thinning the amount on a small portion of the painters' plate she carefully drew the brush closer to the canvas. A sense of tension filled the air as the first and most important stroke in the painting drew closer. Just as the brush tip reached the canvas she took a deep breath and slowly drew the line across the canvas. Half-way through the stroke though-

KA-BOOM!!

The sparrow jumped into the air in fright and flew as fast as its little wings could move away from the explosion that had left a smoking cloud form on the other side of the compound. Inside the gallery, the snake had been thrust out of its nap and was moving its head in every direction to find the source of the noise, though in its half-awake state it took a few minutes for it to connect the dots. Once it did the snake did the closest impression of a shrug before making itself comfortable again. And the woman…..

The woman stared at the canvas that now had half a stroke that was perfect, and the other half that made crazy up-down and little zigzags. Her hand trembled as tension, frustration, despair, and finally anger filled her quacking muscles. Calm as can be she cleaned her brush of paint so that it would not stain and clump when she left it. Closing her paints carefully so that they would not dry while being left out she unfolded her legs and rose from her seat. Walking steadily to the door, she left it open for the snake in case it decided to leave.

The woman walked down the hall of the original compound, passing by her connected bedroom-study and her brothers' rooms before slowly walking down the stairs. Once she reached the bottom of the stairs she turned in 180 degrees and walked to the shoe-resting area down the hall. Slipping out of her house-slippers she put on her traditional sandals and approached the front door. From there she could hear frantic arguing as the culprits of the explosion tried to find a way to escape before she reached them. A giggle from behind her made her look back to its source.

A woman in her late twenties with dark hair and eyes held mirth in her features as she listened to the arguing. "Do try to not punish them _too_ much Usagi-san." She gave a curt nod before grasping the door handle and slamming it open, her KI off the scale.

The arguing ceased as the culprits slowly turned to look at the one person they feared above all others. There was a tense moment of silence before one of them meekly spoke.

"H-hi n-neechan. Umm it's a v-very nice d-day out isn't it……….we're dead aren't we." The woman nodded and growled something fierce as she allowed her pent up emotions to the surface. Instant screaming issued.

"I HAVE TOLD YOU TWO TWICE NOW THAT IF YOU CONDUCTED JUTSU IT WAS TO BE DONE IN THE TRAINING GROUND NEXT DOOR OR WHEN I AM NOT DOING AN IMPORTANT PIECE. AND WHAT DO I FIND JUST AS I START ON A VERY IMPROTANT WORK AND HAVE A NOW RUINED CANVAS? _A PAIR OF IDIOTS THAT HAVE DISOBAYED ME ON THREE SEPARATE ACCOUNTS NOW AND HAVE MADE ME LOOSE THE **PERFECT** PAINTING THAT I HAVE BEEN RIPPING MY SKULL APART TRYING TO IMAGINE!! **I. AM. ANGRY!!!**_"

By now the boys were shacking in their boots, kneeling on the ground, and silently begging the Kami for mercy from their enraged sister. The KI in the air was near suffocating, they swore they saw and felt themselves die yet they knew that they were still alive. Both of the boys shivered again when their sister's KI began to wrap around them, becoming cloaks of pure terror that was slowly killing them for real.

If they could, both boys would have no doubt thought that it was moments like this that reminded them that their sister had been a warrior half her life before she came into their lives.

Just as the two boys were about to fall unconscious from her KI, the Kami finally sent them a life-save in the form of a teasing voice and a firm shake. The KI disappeared instantly and the boys groggily looked behind them to see the familiar hands of a certain dog-man, the teasing voice from before causing them to look at the form behind their sister.

Sasuke felt relief when he saw his mother. Naruto silently swore in terror that he was never doing jutsu on the compound again.

Usagi looked behind her to the woman who had come to be a good friend over the years. "They need to learn what happens when I get angry Mikito. They should know better than to do something as disruptive as perform jutsu on the compounds, especially when they know I am working." Mikito scoffed at those words before walking to the still kneeling boys. As she checked them for ruptured blood vessels, a dangerous side-effect of KI damage, she replied to the masked woman with a touch of scorn.

"Hai that is true, but not to the point they die from the experience. If you want to punish them, give them a list of chores that will leave them begging for salvation or make them the bag carriers during shopping trips."

Usagi growled before nodding curtly. "Fine, if that's what you want than that's what they'll get. For the next two weeks straight they will do all of the chores the others were assigned to do outside of missions. Is that clear?" She stared at the vigorously nodding boys for a moment before entering the house once more.

Mikito turned back to the boys. Both were shacking and sweating from the aftereffects of Usagi's KI but none of them were in any physical danger, they had been the recipients of KI too long to not have gained some defense. For a moment, their images were replaced with images of two other boys surviving a sensei's wrath. Mikito smiled sadly at the memories.

"Oooie minna!!" A high-pitched females' voice called out from farther down the clan road. Mikito raised her head and smiled when she saw Sakura running and waving with a bright smile, Hinata and Ino not far behind. She waved back at the pink-haired girl before slowly lowering her hand. She didn't even spare a glance at Naraku, who grumbled about a lost nap and went back to his favorite shading tree. When the girls reached the group they took one look at the boys' condition and began teasing/lecturing them about not following the rules and did they want to end up like Kaka-ero?

Mikito sighed before returning to the house as well. Absently taking her outdoor footwear off and replacing it with indoor wear she had to admit that a lot had changed in the past few years. Mechanically returning to the kitchen Mikito remembered the night everything had gone to Hell.

_*Flashback*_

_"Konnban wa Mikito-sama, come in please." Usagi stepped aside so that the Uchiha matriarch could enter her small home. Mikito obliged and as she changed her footwear she took note of how _peaceful_ the air was inside the house. It was not a grand compound like at the Uchiha district nor a small mansion used by the minor clans, but Mikito knew that the atmosphere within the house made up for lack of visible prestige. _

_"It seems that neither Itachi-san or your husband Uchiha-sama could make it. Clan business?" The masked woman inquired with a tilt of the head. Mikito was internally startled by the blunt manner of her son's 'guardian' but pushed it down._

_"Yes I am afraid. My husband will be having an important meeting with the clan and Itachi had some ANBU business. I however had some free time on my hands and I was delighted to have the chance to see my son again after nearly half a year." Mikito replied dutifully. The Uzumaki head hummed while nodding in understanding. _

_They stopped walking when they reached a room that had the faint smell of food and the sounds of many people inside. Usagi opened the door without ceremony but let Mikito go before her as a sign of respect. As Mikito entered the small yet spacious room she recognized most of the people sitting at the table. On one side were her son and his clan-brother, Uzumaki Naruto, along with two of the three that served the Uzumaki Head without question. On the other side were the heirs of the Hyuuga and Yamamaka clans, along with a masked jounin that Mikito recognized as Hakate Kakashi who, contrary to his reputation, was not reading one of his favorite series. Shockingly enough she also saw one Misturagi Anko sitting next to Hakate, looking more subdued and controlled than Mikito had ever seen. She was even wearing some appropriate attire for the occasion!_

_Mikito wondered quite understandably if a natural disaster was going to happen._

_"Come Mikito-sama, sit at my left. You are one of my honored invited guests." Usagi softly commanded from her seat at the head of the table. Mikito, realizing she had been rude, bowed her head in apology and took her seat at the left corner closest to Usagi. Once she was properly seated Usagi clapped her hands twice, making the room go silent. _

_"As is traditional for my family, we will say our meal prayer before eating or drinking. Guests are not required to do so, so if you wish it than you need only wait a minute for us to finish." Placing her flat palms on her lap Usagi took a deep breath before uttering the meal prayer. __"We thank you, Kami's of days long since passed, for granting us another meal to give us strength. May you accept our prayers and gratefulness as we dine on that which has been given to us in good will." _

_"In good will." The other members of her clan repeated. Mikito did not let anyone there notice, but as they said the prayer she swore something had been inside watching them as they prayed and it made her feel uncomfortable. Her discomfort vanished as soon as the prayer ended and Usagi put some food on her plate before passing it over to Mikito. From the blonde's chuckle, she most likely knew of the Matriarch's startlment. _

_"I apologize Mikito-sama. I forgot that most of the people in Hi no Kuni do not follow the same practice that my old village does. You see the diners are not given an expected meal for them to eat but take the amount they want to eat from the serving dish and pass it to the next guest. Or if a guest farther away asks for a dish close to you you pass it along to someone closer to the one asking or to them directly." Usagi explained to the woman before play-whispering to her. "Sasuke-kun had that exact same look on his face when he first experienced it." _

_Sasuke blushed at that and turned his head away but glared at Naruto when he nudged his stomach, it didn't help that Naruto had a foxy-smile on as he did so._

_Once Mikito lost her surprise it was not long before the entire group began to talk to each other about anything they could think of. Mikito would not admit it to anyone but that night she learned things about the people there that no rumors had ever spoken of. Such as Hakate being a good, if always having to keep on his toes, friend that often visited the Uzumaki's whenever he had some free time. He often came to give the boys ninjutsu advice that always blew up in their faces before they got it right, to the chagrin of their clan head. She learned that as punishment for something that Usagi refused to talk about she played matchmaker for Hakate and Mitsurashi. She somehow made it so that the two now were willingly beginning to interact with each other in public as something more than fellow shinobi. And from the look in Anko's eyes as Usagi told Mikito how she did it, the snake-wielder may actually be coming to like their relationship. She told multiple stories to the Uchiha about her brothers' antics and how they always ended up getting into trouble. That had made both boys looked down in both embarrassment and anger._

_Mikito had to hold back a laugh when Usagi told everyone about the "Pink-present" prank Naruto had done on Naraku months ago and how long it took for the marker to wash off. _

_Suddenly, in mid sentence, Usagi shot up from her seat and dashed out of the room. Her two vassals were right behind her followed by the jounin. Mikito and the children ran after them, both boys asking what was wrong. _

_Usagi ignored them, in fact Mikito watched in shock as she ignored even switching her shoes until she ripped the front door open. She froze a moment before cursing a storm. Spinning around she ordered Kakashi, Anko and Naraku to head for the Uchiha district while Kaiko to stay here and protect Mikito and the children. They demanded explanations but she silenced them._

_"We don't have time to explain! Lives are at stake here! Now move it!!" Usagi dashed out of the house. _

_"What about you?!" Anko yelled._

_"I have a student to save!!" _

_*End Flashback*_

Mikito paused washing the dishes as the memory awakened hurt emotions.

It turned out that that very night Itachi, for no apparent reason, had gone insane and committed genocide on his own kin. At that same moment Daichi, who had under orders been watching Sakura due to concerns from Usagi, had mentally sent news of the situation to his master.

It had been a dark night all those years ago. Thanks to the quick thinking of Usagi, thirty of the clan had been saved mostly because they had not gone to the meeting that night and because Itachi had not reached them before Kakashi, Naraku, and Anko had appeared. The other two-hundred and fifty-seven members were not so lucky, her husband among them. Itachi had fled into the Konoha wilderness and had not been seen since.

During this Usagi had dashed to Sakura's house and had just stopped Sakura's father from stabbing his beaten and bleeding wife to death. She had made quick work of him then, but the damage had been done. Sakura, who had been cradling the bleeding cat-form of Daichi, had watched the whole thing.

It took a long time before Sakura and her mother healed from that night.

Faint laughter from outside made her lips form a smile.

The village had been in chaos the week after that. With the sudden loss of the Police Force and almost all of the Uchiha clan dead, power shifts and moral were ripped apart and put back together. It took the Sandaime ordering the village in a lock-down and days of non-stop politics and power usage to clean up the mess that had landed on his door-step.

In the end everything had calmed down but not without radical change. With most of the Uchiha now gone, the Police Force had been disbanded until further notice. Once Mikito had, by right as the now Clan Head, removed all of the Uchiha clan's secrets and scrolls and had collected her personal belongings she moved out of the house. The rest of the survivors, mostly elders and young children, had followed her example and left the compound. The Uchiha compound, now no longer housing even a decent-sized community, had been sold to the village. Usagi, who had shown great sympathy for the clan members, had offered to house any who were willing to live on another clan's grounds; if not than she would at least give them shelter until they found a home in the village. By the end of that year only seven had chosen to live in the village.

Usagi, with a much larger number of people looking to her for support, had called in a favor from the Hi no Daimyo to help her build a half-dozen more houses with people he trusted. The daimyo himself had come to the village to both give Usagi his condolences and to catch up with her. A few international officials had also come to help Usagi as soon as they heard of her situation; though how they learned of it when the village had been in lock-down made many shinobi keep a suspicious eye on outsiders.

Many in the village had learned that day that the Uzumaki Head had more friends in high places than she let on.

On a more positive note, this incident had made the bonds between the children much stronger. At first the boys along with Ino and Hinata had not known what to do with the depressive and withdrawn Sakura. But five weeks of dealing with her had led to Naruto and the gang coming up with a prank that had traumatized the entire village but once Sakura had seen the big bold letters "For Sakura-chan" written in pink paint all over the Tower, she had laughed until she cried. Ever since then the group of five were always seen together no matter where they went.

Sakura and her mother now lived in a different home closer to the Uzumaki grounds, right on top of the art shop Usagi had opened not long after moving to Konoha. In exchange for three months of free room, board and necessities, they ran the shop publicly and received 90 percent of the profits while the remaining profit went to the Uzumaki coffers. Once the three months were up the two would have to take care of themselves and send twenty percent of the profit as a bi-monthly rent. It was hard on them both at first, as neither had experience in marketing nor dealing with the memories of their abusive father/husband. Usagi was willing to give Sakura's mother lessons on how to take care of the shop in her stead while Ino gave Sakura pointers on how to be a good sale-employee; but it was the sheer guts of them both working together that not only kept them together but allowed for the shop, thus them, to flourish.

"Mikito, do you have a moment?" Mikito turned from her task and smiled gently at the patient form of her co-Clan Head. Ever since most of her clan had moved in along with her to the Uzumaki grounds she and the masked woman had formed a partnership and friendship. While the Uchiha members answered to Mikito on issues involving things that were Uchiha-only, such as the clan techniques, it was Usagi they went to for most of everything else. She was their landowner and source of economic stability until they could take care of themselves. Often the two clan heads had to work together with most of the troubles the clan members brought to them. Thus months into their partnership both had officially declared that they would be co-Heads. Mikito doubted either of them at the time had any idea just how much that would change the kin dynamics between the two resident clans.

She still remembered the sight of Usagi visibly shocked as an Uchiha child walked by with the Uchiha crest on one shoulder, the Uzumaki on the other, and a certain genkin's logo on the back of the shirt.

"Of course Usagi. Is something the matter?" Both women left the kitchen and entered the dining room, Usagi sagging into the seat while Mikito followed gracefully. Mikito felt a little worried at the sight of her friend looking so visibly tired. For Usagi, who often had control of her body language down to an art at times, it meant that she was tired.

Usagi sighed again before turning her head towards Mikito. "The genin exam is tomorrow Mikito" Mikito nodded in agreement, she had known this for weeks.

"The children will pass the Academy's new test Usagi, we know this." Mikito replied. Usagi sighed heavily at that.

"It's not that I disbelieve that they will pass Mikito, I helped design the upgrades to the Academy myself; I know that they will pass." Mikito blinked in confusion.

"Then why are you so worried?"

Usagi was silent for a moment before she began to brush her masked cheek with her thumb. "It's not from them not passing that worries me. It's what will happen to them once they **do** pass." At once Mikito understood what this was about. She mentally sent her friend her sympathy as she too thought of what the future held.

'I will not deny that they will have a better chance of surviving this life longer thanks in no small part to Usagi's stubbornness.' Mikito thought to herself; remembering how Usagi, feeling curious about how the Academy worked, had watched the teachers and classes for a week. She had been so disgusted that she bared herself in her study for three straight days before coming out with a pile of programs, new teaching methods, and a list of detailed weaknesses in the Academy's curriculum. Then without an ounce of respect she barged in on the Sandaime and slammed her work onto his desk. Before he could even demand what she was doing, she told him outright that if he was going to allow the Academy to continue as it was, she would take her brothers and Sakura from the program and home-school them herself. And as an added bonus, if he didn't clean the Academy out of the filth that they called teachers, she would show distinct proof of the nepotism and bribery the teachers took to the public. She told him, in no small detail, how many of the civilian parents and children who had been set aside to let the clan children receive the spotlight would react.

It had been no small amount of blackmail, and combined with the evidence presented to him, the Sandaime had really no choice but to 'clean up' the Academy. It didn't happen overnight, and it had quite a bit of opposition from some of the clans, but with the combined pressure of the Sandaime and the Uzumaki-Uchiha family it got done. Mikito had smirked at the Council when the results of the clean up showed a fifty percent increase in the Academy's ratings and shinobi team graduation.

Now teams were made based on the social dynamics of the students in combination with the skills they showed the most aptitude for. The jounin sensei's who were going to teach them watched the students as they tried to pass a test that not only tested them on their book smarts and basic jutsu, but also on team dynamics, one-on-one combat situations, information gathering, psychology, and stealth. For the students, they now had a wider range of choice in terms of skills and goals. Stereotypes and classes that had previously narrowed their choices were now gone.

Usagi always denied being embarrassed whenever she heard a kunoichi proclaim openly how they idolized the masked woman for one reason or another.

"Mikito?" Mikito left that line of thought and returned to the present. She smiled at the masked woman kindly.

"Just remembering how you helped give those same children a better chance is all." Mikito knew her friend was hiding her embarrassment again when she twitched.

"Yes, anyway you understand what I mean Mikito. I was a genkin for half my life before I came to Konoha; I know what sort of things happen to shinobi when they fall into a pit." Mikito gave the masked woman a small smile.

"That is part of a parent watching their children grow up Usagi. It happens with every parent, though in your case the term would be sister." Usagi snorted at the Uchiha's teasing.

"I know your right Mikito, I just…….(sigh) I just can't help but fear that one day they will be there than the next…" Mikito remained silent at those words.

She didn't have the heart to tell her that she felt the same.

\/\/\\/\/\

"Naruto-baka, Sasuke-teme, you really need to learn to not make nee-chan angry one of these days." Sakura scolded as she mentally looked them over for any injuries. Seeing none the pinket heaved the two up. Hinata blushed when she saw Naruto, but quickly hide it behind her oversized coat. Ino merely rolled her eyes at them all, wondering why she stayed with these hopeless cases.

Sakura huffed and held her fists at her hips when she saw them both look away from each other in their usual I-am-not-talking-to-the-idiot-next-to-me fashion. Really, who did they think they were dealing with? Her eyebrow twitched.

Naraku, who had been watching them from his favorite tree, smirked when Sakura punched the boys so hard they made imprints in the dirt. 'To think just three years ago you couldn't find a worst group of no talent but great potential.' He thought to himself.

Naruto for example, that was a case of negative shit following him like dogs on meat. When he was brought to the house that day he was a mess. Social paranoia, attention deficient, social misfit that barely knew how to interact with others politely, barely even knew how to defend himself from his abusive home, and don't even think about what the jumpsuit probably meant. Now, thanks to Usagi's harsh but fair hand, the loud-mouth had the signs of becoming a fine warrior in a few years. His in-your-face-yet-being-stealthy-about-it nature had gone into his fighting style, much to his sister's annoyance.

Sasuke had been better off when he came, but the signs of self-seen inferiority had been obvious to his mistress. It was one of the main reasons she chose him as her payment. However years of constant harsh training under Usagi alongside Naruto and the girls had destroyed most of it. He had shown to possess the right type of style to wield swords like Usagi, but until his chakra nature was formed she refused to teach him anything advance.

Sakura, who barely would speak unless spoken to, had flourished under her father-less home-life. She was confident, outspoken, and would take no shit from anyone now but Usagi and her mother. The only thing that ever showed her abusive past was her newfound explosive temper, her willingness to be violent at the drop of a hat, and her high perception of what others were feeling. She was well on her way to becoming what Usagi had called 'a specialized-generalist'. Her apprenticeship under Usagi had molded her into a fine field-medic, with knowledge and skills in poisons, non-chakra healing, and dodging skills that none of her peers could obtain. Of course that wasn't the only thing Usagi taught her.

Hinata, the Hyuuga heiress, had absolutely no confidence in herself when she first came. The stiffening atmosphere of her home combined with her nature had turned her into an emotional wreak. Usagi had seen early on that while Hinata had no choice but to learn her clan's fighting style, it didn't mean she couldn't learn other things. Thus she had decided to approach Hiashi about teaching his daughter how to do med-nin treatments. At first the Hyuuga had refused to even listen to such an idea, as it would be going against the traditions of the clan. However, after seeing how well Hinata had readjusted Hinabi's ankle after a training accident Hiashi had sat down and spent an entire night thinking over Usagi's idea. In the end the Hyuuga Head had given her his blessing to teach her how to be a healer, so long as Hinata did not stop showing progress in her Jyuuken. Ever since then Hinata had proven many times over with her ointments and basic medic knowledge.

Ino, now she had been the most emotionally and physically healthy years ago. The only problem with her was that she had priority issues combined with an energy that none of her family could work on. When Usagi had asked her if she wanted to use the knowledge she had gained both in her family's shop and under her as a weapon, Ino had not even hesitated. Now three years later, Ino was infamous among her peers for her poisons and sabotage.

"It is amazing how quickly humans grow sometimes, ne Naraku?" a familiar voice spoke up. Looking to his right, Naraku was not surprised to see Kaiko, in her human form, sitting next to him cross-legged. From the look in her eyes, it was obvious she had been able to read his mode again.

The inu-youkai snorted. "Too quick sometimes. Before long Usagi will be having brats of her own and the brats will be adults if we blink." Kaiko hummed in agreement.

"We are not humans' koi, for us their lives will be only a fraction of our life-spans. But at the same time, they are a species that, in their short lives, live life every day to their capacity."

"Sometimes that is not a good thing." He replied, remembering all the pranks the group played. Kaiko smiled at him and leaned on his shoulder, content to watch the next generation simply _live_.

\/\/\/\/

Now the pairing choices thus far.

Naruto:

Sasuke-7

Hinata-5

Haku/M-2

Ino-1

Itachi-1

Shikamaru-1

Sasuke:

Hinata-2

Temari-1

Tayuya-1

OOC-1

Sakura:

Lee-6

Itachi-2

Shino-1

Other pairings:

Lee/Haku (either)-1

By the next chapter I will have closed the pairing poll and as I said in the previous chapter I am spending a lot of my time on SoG so the next chapter for RotCS may not come for months now.

I thank all those you have stayed with me thus far and appreciate your words and your support.

Until next time!


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